Ticketmaster warning over Coldplay tickets and tips to beat queue

The Ticketmaster queue. It is enough to drive fear into the heart of any concert goer. No sooner has an announcement been made then the inevitable panic about how to get to the front of the dreaded queue begins.

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Why does Ticketmaster have a queue system? The reality is that it is often a necessity for bigger concerts and events. Several million people can attempt to get tickets for the biggest tours such as Oasis - where tickets are now only available for huge prices on resale sites - and that means the Ticketmaster systems can be overwhelmed.

Ticketmaster usually has the largest amount of tickets available for UK shows and once again it will be the go-to place for Coldplay tickets. Fans will also be able to go to SeeTickets for tickets and SeatUnique for hospitality at the shows but the majority of tickets will be available on Ticketmaster only.

Coldplay tickets are on sale on Ticketmaster at 9am on Friday here. The band will play at Hull’s Craven Park Stadium on 18 and 19 August followed by dates at Wembley Stadium in London on 23, 26, 27, 30 and 31 August in 2025. 

To beat the queue fans of the band will need to do a number of things.

The first is to sign up to Ticketmaster now. This means creating an account and updating your card details. You will have to do this before you are allowed tickets and you do not want to be messing around with confirmation emails and adding new cards while your 15 minutes at the front of the queue ticks down.

Ticketmaster itself says: “During high-demand sales, tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis and aren’t guaranteed. We recommend joining the waiting room 15 minutes prior to the event going on sale.”

On Friday morning you will need to go to this page. This is where a ‘waiting room’ will be set up. In recent ticket launches the waiting room has appeared earlier than the ticket on-sale time so it is worth getting here early. 

Once you are on the page do not refresh. This is the golden rule. Whether you are in the queue or the waiting room, refreshing will reset your progress and could send you to the back of the queue. 

Ticketmaster said: “If you’re planning to shop for an event on your mobile device, don’t allow your screen to dim or your Waiting Room will pause. And, resist the urge to refresh, as your page will automatically refresh when you enter the queue. Turning up the volume on your device, so when it’s your turn, you hear the queue notification bell sound — even if you need to step away.”

You will be given a queue number. It may be a very large number. Do not worry though, if you stick with it you will get to the front of the queue.

Here is another tip. Not everybody who gets to the front of the queue will end up buying a ticket. Some people will be kicked out due to poor internet connectivity, or because they did not create an account at the beginning and they have maxed out their time.

Some people may decide to not buy tickets because their preferred seats are taken or that the prices are too high when it gets to the checkout. These tickets will then be returned to the general sale and will be available for the next people in the queue. 

It means tickets can be made available hours after the general sale begins, even if it looks like the event may sell out. A small number will be made available at a later time so it is always worth staying in the queue as long as possible.

There is also the chance Coldplay will announce more dates if they see demand is high enough to justify it. This would mean new dates added and a second queue you can join if you need.