A LEGENDARY Scottish music venue has been ranked as one of the best in Europe in a new report.
Pollstar magazine, a leading trade publication for the live entertainment industry, ranked Glasgow’s Barrowland Ballroom as one of the most successful “club venues” in Europe.
The publication’s annual “Magna Charta” report highlights the European live entertainment industry during the past year and includes charts which rank the top tours, venues and performers.
The five categories – amphitheatres, arenas, clubs, stadiums and theatres – are ranked by their overall gross and the number of tickets sold over a 12-month timeframe that began on February 1, 2023 and continued to the end of January.
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Of the venues, the arena chart highlights the top 100 facilities, while clubs, stadiums and theatres each feature a top 50 and the amphitheatre chart features the top 25 venues.
The Barrowland Ballroom was ranked as the second best club in Europe, with 75,049 tickets sold in the reporting period, grossing $3,070,401.
Elsewhere, King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut – also in Glasgow – was named in eighth position in the prestigious list with 41,352 tickets sold, grossing $706,826.
Manchester Academy, in 10th position, was the only other UK venue to make the top ten which also included venues in Milan, Berlin, Cologne and Hamburg.
Meanwhile, other Glasgow venues joined the Barrowland and King Tuts in the top 50 clubs in Europe list, with Galvanizers in 14th place and SWG3 in 29th.
The OVO Hydro was also named in the industry report in seventh position in the list of the top 100 arenas in Europe while Kelvingrove Bandstand and Amphitheatre was ranked in third position in Pollstar’s list of the top 25 amphitheatres in Europe.
The SEC Armadillo and O2 Academy also ranked highly in the top 50 theatres in Europe, coming in sixth and ninth position respectively.
Bellahouston Park was ranked 41st in the top 50 “stadiums” in Europe category.
Speaking to The Herald about the news, Glasgow’s Lord Provost Jacqueline McLaren said: “Everyone who lives in Glasgow or who has visited knows it lives up to its reputation as a UNESCO City of Music.
"As well as being a city teeming with talented musicians, it’s also a place appreciated for consistently encouraging and promoting live music.
“Since the pandemic, people are keen to catch their favourite artists live. We’re proud to offer a range of fantastic venues from the legendary Barrowland, to intimate places like St Luke’s as well as the OVO Hydro’s (above) stadium style facilities.
“Glaswegians love their music and our audiences are considered among the most discerning and enthusiastic in the world.”
Three other Scottish venues also featured, with Murrayfield ranked in 23rd position in the stadium list, while the Usher Hall in the capital ranked 30th on the theatre list.
Aberdeen's P&J Live arena was also ranked as the 37th best theatre in Europe.
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