DEAG positive with revenue increase

Berlin-headquartered live entertainment services company DEAG has seen its revenue increase approximately 19% to reach €252.8m (£210m/$267m) for the first nine months of 2024.

Additionally, revenue for the third quarter rose by 33% to €120.1m compared to €90.7m during the same period the year prior. 

As of September 30, DEAG sold roughly 8.5 million tickets for current and upcoming events, an increase of 35% compared to the previous year. 

However, EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) for the reporting nine-month period totalled €5.3m compared €13.8m in the same period of the previous year.

Despite a positive revenue increase, a press release from DEAG said that the reporting period was heavily affected by significant higher production costs for events, which could not be fully offset by the rise in ticket prices. Elsewhere, storms and heavy rainfall during the summer months prevented some open-air concerts and festivals from behind held and burdened the margin. 

With Germany hosting the men’s UEFA Euro 2024 football tournament during the summer, live entertainment was negatively impacted by the competition.

In October, DEAG announced the acquisition of Italian live entertainment organiser MC2 Live – demonstrating its commitment to its European expansion strategy. 

During the reporting period, DEAG organised more than 6,000 concerts, festivals and live events. These included tours and concerts from the likes of AC/DC, Andreas Gabalier, UB40, Simply Red and more. 

“2024 is an important year of transformation for DEAG. We have initiated and already implemented several investment programmes and continued our Buy & Build strategy despite a challenging environment for the entire industry,” commented Detlef Kornett, group chief executive of DEAG.

“We made a clear commitment to these extensive investments and therefore also accepted a decline in EBITDA. We are investing heavily to sustainably drive our company’s development and offer our visitors even more unforgettable live experiences, both digitally and on site. Thanks to our strong financial structure, a diverse and high-calibre event portfolio and strong ticket sales.”

For 2025, DEAG is involved in major tours and concerts from artists such as Stereophonics, Andrea Bocelli and Iron Maiden.