Download 2026

[Spiral_Low]

7 hours ago, DomDom1984 said:

There is zero chance of Bad Omens as a headliner. Don't want to be setting a precedent of smaller acts doing it.

Maiden out. Metallica out. SOAD out. BMTH out. Of other bands allegedly available, if it's not GnR, Ghost or Limp Bizkit, who would it be? 

[sacred shape]

18 minutes ago, Spiral_Low said:

Maiden out. Metallica out. SOAD out. BMTH out. Of other bands allegedly available, if it's not GnR, Ghost or Limp Bizkit, who would it be? 

Give me Muse

[craigcharles420]

18 minutes ago, Spiral_Low said:

Maiden out. Metallica out. SOAD out. BMTH out. Of other bands allegedly available, if it's not GnR, Ghost or Limp Bizkit, who would it be? 

Muse or NIN

[Spiral_Low]

14 minutes ago, sacred shape said:

Give me Muse

 

14 minutes ago, craigcharles420 said:

Muse or NIN

Guys Muse was on my prediction.

 

Bad Omens - Muse - Linkin Park

[Audiorocker]

Foo Fighters - Muse - Linkin Park. 

All 3 bands quite quiet on the Uk front...

[DomDom1984]

I refuse to believe that's the biggest available. And if it is, I'd wager they'd pay a fortune to get someone who actually fits the bill. 

 

I'm not a booker so I don't know, but I'm pretty confident DL won't book someone who shouldn't be in that spot.

[Jos92]

19 minutes ago, DomDom1984 said:

I refuse to believe that's the biggest available. And if it is, I'd wager they'd pay a fortune to get someone who actually fits the bill. 

 

I'm not a booker so I don't know, but I'm pretty confident DL won't book someone who shouldn't be in that spot.

I never felt QOTSA were big enough to headline DL but it happened, at the end of the day can only book who is available and with their exclusivity requirements that really does shorten the field these days.

[TWY2911]

7 minutes ago, Jos92 said:

I never felt QOTSA were big enough to headline DL but it happened, at the end of the day can only book who is available and with their exclusivity requirements that really does shorten the field these days.

 

Do most of the other European festivals have exclusivity rules? Because if they don't that doesn't seem to have made a difference as they all seem to get the same headliners 

[northernangel]

12 minutes ago, TWY2911 said:

 

Do most of the other European festivals have exclusivity rules? Because if they don't that doesn't seem to have made a difference as they all seem to get the same headliners 

A lot of them don't care. Book huge headliners that are capable of selling Download tickets and their own shows and you're laughing. R&L have two sites to sell yet still let Green Day for example in the past play the Emirates. 

 

23 minutes ago, Jos92 said:

I never felt QOTSA were big enough to headline DL but it happened, at the end of the day can only book who is available and with their exclusivity requirements that really does shorten the field these days.

 

They weren't but they were in a year as said of asking 21 bands and that's who they ended up with.

[Spiral_Low]

44 minutes ago, DomDom1984 said:

I refuse to believe that's the biggest available. And if it is, I'd wager they'd pay a fortune to get someone who actually fits the bill. 

 

I'm not a booker so I don't know, but I'm pretty confident DL won't book someone who shouldn't be in that spot.

They've booked AX7 in that spot 3 times now!

[Spiral_Low]

26 minutes ago, Jos92 said:

I never felt QOTSA were big enough to headline DL but it happened, at the end of the day can only book who is available and with their exclusivity requirements that really does shorten the field these days.

Exactly. That's why I'm saying Bad Omens - Muse - Linkin Park as that is who looks to be available. Maybe it will be Linp Bizkit so I'm not saying that is a 100%, just trying to make a reasonable guess. 

[Jos92]

2 minutes ago, Spiral_Low said:

Exactly. That's why I'm saying Bad Omens - Muse - Linkin Park as that is who looks to be available. Maybe it will be Linp Bizkit so I'm not saying that is a 100%, just trying to make a reasonable guess. 

I wouldn't be shocked at bad omens, similar vein to sleep token, strike while the iron is hot.

[Jos92]

6 minutes ago, northernangel said:

A lot of them don't care. Book huge headliners that are capable of selling Download tickets and their own shows and you're laughing. R&L have two sites to sell yet still let Green Day for example in the past play the Emirates. 

 

 

They weren't but they were in a year as said of asking 21 bands and that's who they ended up with.

I always thought that whole narrative of the 21 acts was very poor, doesn't exactly fill you with confidence about the festival, I'm sure the bands management weren't thrilled either. 

[Andre91]

4 minutes ago, Jos92 said:

I wouldn't be shocked at bad omens, similar vein to sleep token, strike while the iron is hot.

The iron isn’t hot enough. 

[Audiorocker]

Think that Ghost or Parkway Drive are the ones likely for new headliners

[Jos92]

Just now, Audiorocker said:

Think that Ghost or Parkway Drive are the ones likely for new headliners

Couldn't be parkway after how bad their tour sold I don't think, if they could there's alot of names you could put out there, he'll even Halestorm is putting up stronger numbers.

 

Ghost absolutely though 

[Jos92]

Reddits cooked. Bring on the announcement 

[Rusty Spoon]

Bad Omens are subs or second stage headliners at best. Their arena tour is miles off selling out. That's not to say they won't headline in the next few years if their next album is a hit.

[gabrielomachado]

I have a feeling that Bad Omens might fall on the "what could have been" category of BFMV, Machine Head, A Day To Remember etc. in the near future.

[northernangel]

51 minutes ago, Jos92 said:

I always thought that whole narrative of the 21 acts was very poor, doesn't exactly fill you with confidence about the festival, I'm sure the bands management weren't thrilled either. 

Its not something tou admit as a festival that you needed to ask that many bands and basically finally settled on those 3. I could understand 7 or 8 options being asked maybe but 21 is ludicrous. Also up their with oen of tbe poorest trios they've booked but then I thought this year was massively saved by finally clinching Green Day.

[chatty]

When did having big headliners become a thing as festivals used to just book a load of bands up and have them scattered about the day and it didn't mind. 

 

Even in the 90s you had the likes of Ash, Carter USM, Youssou Ndour, Skunk Anansie headlining Glastonbury and whilst bigger at the time I doubt they were huge draws. 

 

The Charlatans, Travis, Porno for Pyros headlining Reading/Leeds though their headliners seem a bit more consistently bigger than Glastos. 

 

Melanie, Taste, Tiny Tim, Richie Havens at IOW. 

 

Maybes some of these were huge at the time but I don't think so. 

[MasterHand]

Hello,

 

my first post. I’ve been monitoring for awhile on this forum and decided to join in. 
 

It’s first time I’ve bought a ticket to a festival without actually knowing any bands on the bill. Usually I know who’s playing but wanted to do something different.

 

anyway, I was thinking about these as headliners:

 

Friday - Deftones

Saturday - Ghost

Sunday - Linkin Park

 

I still think System of a Down or My Chemical Romance could headline. Simply because they are in the UK that month and I don’t see other plans on their schedule. Would Def Leppard also be a possibility? Is it possible for Evanescence to finally have a shot at the headline slot? 
 

As for the other acts over the weekend on other stages: Perturbator, Nova Twins, Megadeth, In This Moment, Halestorm. Dare I say Yungblud to make an appearance over the weekend?

 

look forward to talking. Less than a month to go!

 

 

[kitatus]

3 minutes ago, chatty said:

When did having big headliners become a thing as festivals used to just book a load of bands up and have them scattered about the day and it didn't mind. 

 

Even in the 90s you had the likes of Ash, Carter USM, Youssou Ndour, Skunk Anansie headlining Glastonbury and whilst bigger at the time I doubt they were huge draws. 

 

The Charlatans, Travis, Porno for Pyros headlining Reading/Leeds though their headliners seem a bit more consistently bigger than Glastos. 

 

Melanie, Taste, Tiny Tim, Richie Havens at IOW. 

 

Maybes some of these were huge at the time but I don't think so. 

I would assume when these things started getting proper expensive and now people need to make sure what they're buying is going to be worth it. Headliners are big draws which have large, pre-installed fanbases and large reach to convince as many people as possible to go. This is why I think the EU festivals all having the same headliners is a bit naff and a quick way to have a festival "crisis". Imo festivals should be focused on unique, "one-off" performances (either by a band that is rare to tour in that location or by them doing something special).

 

It's all gimmicks but those gimmicks shift tickets.

[kitatus]

2 minutes ago, MasterHand said:

I still think System of a Down or My Chemical Romance could headline. Simply because they are in the UK that month and I don’t see other plans on their schedule.

As a general rule, headliners at Download normally have exclusivity, so they can't play their own show in the UK X amount of time before or after Download.

[chatty]

10 minutes ago, kitatus said:

I would assume when these things started getting proper expensive and now people need to make sure what they're buying is going to be worth it. Headliners are big draws which have large, pre-installed fanbases and large reach to convince as many people as possible to go. This is why I think the EU festivals all having the same headliners is a bit naff and a quick way to have a festival "crisis". Imo festivals should be focused on unique, "one-off" performances (either by a band that is rare to tour in that location or by them doing something special).

 

It's all gimmicks but those gimmicks shift tickets.

Well they used to be themed but now every festival is near fighting over the same audience for some reason. Probably due to rock music mostly being none existent in the mainstream for the last two decades. 

 

Only so much you can recycle the same bands and not many mainstream rock acts been created in that time. 

 

Glastonbury, IOW, Leeds music all very similar now. Glastonbury sells itself of course so they are fine but the others must be feeling the pressure and have lost their identity. Download has changed a lot in that time as well. 

 

Tin the Park and VFestival also had radically changes before they halted being a thing. 

 

Boomtown still feels unique. Download at least stick mostly to rock genres but has a bit of an identity crisis on which rock genres it wants to target. 

 

Overall, I think the main issue is that music needs a drive for bands again. Hopefully Oasis return and popularity goes someway to helping that. 

 

EDIT: however, live music as a whole has probably never been in a better place with how much they can sell tickets for and the amount of people going. Though that probably doesn't help he festivals either because why give them the power when you can just go it solo. 

Edited October 16, 2025 by chatty