Ed Sheeran Shows at Gillette Stadium Canceled Due to Nor’easter

Pop artist Ed Sheeran’s shows on Sept. 25 and 26 at Gillette Stadium were canceled because of bad weather.

“Due to the severe weather warnings in place in Boston and across New England throughout the weekend and following consultation with local officials, the promoter and tour have made the difficult decision to cancel the Ed Sheeran concerts at Gillette Stadium,” the venue with more than 64,000 seats announced on Friday.

The now-canceled concerts intensified controversy surrounding this weekend’s shows, after Gillette Stadium owner Robert Kraft pushed Ed Sheeran to remove Macklemore as an opener of the Loop Tour because of the rapper’s pro-Palestinian comments at a previous concert.

Gillette Stadium, located in Foxborough, Massachusetts, is an open-air venue without a roof to protect fans from the strong nor’easter starting Friday and continuing through the weekend.

An advisory by the National Weather Service in Boston warned the storm will bring increasingly gusty winds, coastal flooding, potential power outages, and a long stretch of wet weather throughout the weekend.

The venue said the decision was made to ensure the safety of fans and staff, which they said was top priority.

Ticketholders who planned to attend the Loop Tour shows in the Boston area will receive refunds.

Sheeran’s website and social media page did not announce the cancellation.

The Epoch Times has reached out to the four-time Grammy Award-winning artist’s team for comment.

Sheeran faced backlash after he removed Macklemore from the tour when the rapper made pro-Palestinian comments onstage during a Sept. 4 concert at ​MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Kraft, New England Patriots owner and chairman and CEO of the Kraft Group, which owns Gillette Stadium, said he would not welcome Macklemore at their shows on Sept. 25 and 26, causing Sheeran to drop the “Thrift Shop” rapper.

“Ed told me that Kraft said I would not be allowed to perform in his stadium,” Macklemore wrote on Instagram. “Ed also told me that Kraft had rallied some of the other stadium owners and collectively they gave him an ultimatum: If Macklemore stays on the tour, you will not be allowed to play in our venues.”

The headliner’s other supporting acts—Aaron Rowe, Beoga, Lukas Graham, and Finneas—also left the tour to stand in solidarity with Macklemore.

“Artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed,” Finneas said on Instagram. “I have decided to withdraw from my upcoming tour dates with Ed Sheeran. I stand with Palestine and its people.”

On Sept. 19, the “Shape Of You” performer, who said he did not want to be a political artist, opened his own show, saying the fallout had not been an easy process.

“I’ve had to take and make difficult decisions and I am making mistakes and I’m so, so sorry,” Sheeran told an audience in Philadelphia.