Major sporting events in ‘arms race’ to secure top singers

For all the fanfare and fuss, when horses take to the track for the Melbourne Cup, the racing itself occupies just a fraction of the day. So it’s not the only competition that occupies organisers’ minds.

The spring racing carnival, like any other major sports event, pours time and money into securing big-name musical talent. This year Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Empire of the Sun will perform at the Melbourne Cup, while Ronan Keating and the Temper Trap will headline other race days.

“Racing takes up 26 minutes of an eight-hour program, so we want to provide headline performances after the feature races,” says Victoria Racing Club chief executive Kylie Rogers.

The actual time horses spend racing on Melbourne Cup day is but a small fraction of the entire day.Credit: Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images

“Racing and the horse are at the heart of everything we do, but what complements our iconic race days are the elements that make this week so unique, including entertainment.”

In common with other major events – including the AFL and NRL grand finals, Australian Open and Formula 1 Grand Prix – the carnival competes to secure international and local stars, offering lucrative contracts in the hope of attracting new fans and reaching new audiences.

Top talent can cost millions. Robbie Williams’ planned performance at the 2020 Australian Grand Prix came with a $1.94 million bill for the singer. His AFL grand final performance was reported to be about $1 million. The cost of getting Katy Perry to the MCG in September was originally rumoured to be $5 million, but it’s since been reported to have been much lower.

Katy Perry performing at the AFL Grand Final.Credit: Justin McManus

Vas Katos, group chief executive of Anthem, an international entertainment consultancy firm, says booking artists is relatively straightforward and relationship-driven.

“It is a surprisingly simple process – it is literally key people from all sides sitting around a table or a series of phone calls and emails,” says Katos, who’s worked in the industry for nearly three decades.

“What would usually happen is the sporting bodies ... would be approaching the major concert promoters, such as Frontier Touring, TEG Dainty, Live Nation, to explore what A-list talent they can access and then try and match them up with their event.”

Katos says there is a sense of one-upmanship between the sporting codes, but ultimately the conversations and relationships get deals done.

Meat Loaf’s infamous 2011 AFL grand final performance. Credit: Mark Dadswell

He says artists performing at these events – which attract large numbers of viewers in person and on TV and social media – are often planning to tour Australia and use appearances to promote themselves. Robbie Williams toured Australia a year after performing at the AFL grand final, KISS did the grand final then a Sydney show, while Katy Perry is returning in June for an Australian tour.

Her performance at last month’s AFL grand final reached more than 6 million people, with an average TV audience of over 4 million. The NRL grand final reached 5.3 million and averaged 3.4 million. Both events prominently featured performers pre-game.

Melbourne Cup day last year reached 2.37 million and the aggregate for the two weeks of the Australian Open was 12 million. Entertainment for these isn’t televised to the extent that it is as part of the AFL and NRL.

Artists get a guaranteed payday for performing, with minimal overheads and risk.

Victoria University event management expert Michael Linley said locking in talent was competitive.

Taylor Swift, pictured here at the MCG this year, cancelled a performance at the Melbourne Cup in 2019. Credit: Jason South

“There’s going to be an arms race to secure the … right artists for your event,” Linley said.

This includes writing exclusion clauses into contracts and paying a premium to prevent stars from performing elsewhere. It’s a practice used by state governments – Victoria snared Billy Joel for a Melbourne-only appearance in 2022 and WA signed Coldplay exclusively late last year.

Linley says events with the biggest reach and deepest pockets generally secured the best performers.

Cup day crowds also do a good job entertaining themselves.Credit: Chris Hopkins

There are risks, though, for both artist and event. Taylor Swift pulled out of playing at the Melbourne Cup in 2019, citing a scheduling clash, but there had been online pressure from animal rights activists.

In 2020, Robbie Williams was set to perform at the Australian Grand Prix, but the event was cancelled at the 11th hour at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. In August, the promoters of Williams’ concert, World Touring Melbourne, were awarded $2.8 million, having sued the GP organisers over the cancellation.

Last month, Tennis Australia announced its line-up for AO LIVE, a music festival held during the tournament, featuring Kesha, Benson Boone and Kaytranada.

A spokesperson for Tennis Australia told this masthead that securing acts was a long process that took many months and many artists were considered. The announcement of the line-up then went viral with TikTok users, they said.

“That audience represents a new generation of potential fans, who we’re confident will come to love the AO and tennis more broadly.”

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