Sam Fender fans left fuming as singer forced to delay pre-sale tour tickets after ‘sophisticated bot attack’

He revealed that automated bots had overwhelmed the site and prevented genuine fans from purchasing tickets.

As a result, the artist pre-sale for the two Newcastle dates has been pushed back by 24 hours to 9:30am on Thursday. Tickets for the wider UK and Ireland stadium tour will then become available to the general public at 9:30am on Friday, October 30.

Fury erupted across social media as fans who had pre-ordered Mr Fender’s forthcoming fourth album specifically to gain early access found themselves locked out of the purchase process.

Many reported encountering “bad gateway” errors, while others said they had been booted from the site after managing to add tickets to their baskets.

“I actually somehow got through and had tickets in my basket for Sam Fender but it’s now kicked me out and page isn’t loading,” one fan wrote on X.

Another posted: “A complete joke, I want a refund on the CD if I don’t end up with tickets.”

One particularly angry user tagged the platform directly: “Gigantic, you are a disgrace. How can you be so badly prepared for the Sam Fender St James Park presales. Sort it out man!!!!!” (sic)

Mr Fender’s full statement on Instagram read: “Being told by the promoters that there’s been a sophisticated bot attack to the gigantic ticket site which is impacting the St James’ Park pre-sale.

“We’re going to have to move the Newcastle pre-sale to 9.30am tomorrow to ensure real fans get the tickets.” (sic)

The two homecoming gigs are scheduled for Thursday, June 3 and Saturday, June 5, 2027, at Newcastle United’s ground.

St James’ Park was the only venue on the tour to use Gigantic rather than Ticketmaster.

Mr Fender is no stranger to the stadium, having previously played sold-out shows there in both 2023 and 2025. No explanation has been offered for why a different ticketing provider was chosen for the Newcastle dates.

The ticketing chaos is the latest headache surrounding Mr Fender’s Proper Massive Stadium Tour, which will also visit Cardiff, Edinburgh, Manchester and Dublin alongside a London date at Wembley Stadium.

Last week, the singer publicly challenged his own promoters over inflated pricing, writing on Instagram: “I’m not happy with these prices, they’re getting changed.”

He successfully pushed to eliminate the premium front-standing tier, which had been listed at up to £130.75 including fees for the Wembley dates.

Mr Fender insisted that all standing ticket holders should have an equal opportunity to reach the front of the stage.

Following his intervention, standing tickets across the UK stadium shows were set at £85 excluding fees, with seated options priced at £55, £75 or £95.