It has seen over three million visitors, of whom almost 18 per cent have travelled from outside the UK.

CEO for ABBA Voyage, Craig Hartenstine, has said, “As I begin my second year as Group CEO for ABBA Voyage, I’m thrilled that the report shows just how much the concert is making a difference, not only economically, with over £1.5billion contributed to London and more than £2billion across the UK, but also socially, through education and community programmes that are having a real, lasting impact.”

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Kham, said, “ABBA Voyage has been an absolute sensation, redefining the possibilities of a music concert and delivering a tremendous boost to our economy. Since it opened three years ago, it has drawn visitors from around the globe, filled restaurants and hotels, and given concertgoers an unforgettable night out.”

ABBA Voyage has contributed £2.06 billion to the UK economy between May 2022 and May 2025. ABBA Voyage has also enhanced employment opportunities for 9,739 annual workers in the UK; including those directly connected to the concert and those in other sectors which are supported by visitor’s spend e.g. hospitality and sales staff, chefs, hotel clerks.

Around £11 million of the wellbeing created by ABBA Voyage relates to who attented the event from London outside of the local area, with £2.1 million relating to attendees from the local area. Concert-related wellbeing benefits as well with visitors reporting improved wellbeing, reduced stress, increased cultural engagement, and strengthened social connections following attendance.

Speaking to NME in 2023, ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus spoke about Voyage’s success as well as looking at the future of the production.

He said, “It’s amazing – it has surpassed any dream I could have ever had. We’ve somehow reached new generations by some miracle. I don’t know how, but there you are. [2008 musical movie] Mamma Mia, I suppose played a role in that. There are new generations coming along.”

He also addressed reported plans for the ABBA Voyage to be taken worldwide, saying, “We hope to stay in this venue for as long as we can. We hope they’ll have us for many years, and we might build other replicas of this in other places: Asia, Australia, North America. There are lots and promoters and cities that we’re talking to at the moment about that.”

The latest music from ABBA was released in 2021 accompanying ‘Voyage‘ album, including the new singles ‘I Still Have Faith In You’, ‘Don’t Shut Me Down’, and ‘Just A Notion’.

The concert is held at the ABBA Arena, which was specifically designed for this event at the Olympic Park in East London. The custom-designed arena was built because of the very specific technical requirements needed for the digital performance of the band members. 

The concept of this concert started with exploring the possibility of creating digital versions of ABBA to be able to perform again, and allow a community and fans to come together and enjoy their songs live again. 

The band itself formed back in 1972 with members Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They split in 1982 after both divorces amongst the band members. The group and their songs are legendary, and they were the first non-English speaking group to achieve consistent chart success across the globe. Their music and fashion style have transcended across generations, still seen as an iconic band today. 

ABBA’s music was also heavily influential for the well-known Mamma Mia movies, as the musical films were built around their songs and helped create a narrative story that became iconic. 

ABBA Voyage, over the past few years, has reunited the band for a new and older generation to enjoy, and a way to celebrate their musical legacy. The concert has also pushed the boundaries of live entertainment by creating realistic avatars through motion capture technology, featuring the group as they looked in the 1970s. The concert runs for 90 minutes with no interruptions, held every day of the week, and is family-friendly, welcoming all ages.

The digital concert’s setlist includes popular songs, ‘Lay All Your Love On Me’, ‘Voulez-vous’, ‘Waterloo’, ‘Fernando’, ‘SOS’, ‘Thank You For The Music’, and ends the night with their most popular song, ‘Dancing Queen’.   

ABBA Voyage has a unique layout for the audience with auditorium seating, which also allows for accessible seating, a dance floor area creating a concert experience, and dance booths designed for smaller groups and pod-like spaces. This design has enhanced the immersive experience. 

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The arena holds 3,000 people, both sitting and standing, and the tickets are generally cheaper than a regular concert, as well as allowing for a slight discount for ticket-holders between the ages of 16-25.

This incredibly unique concert has played exclusively in London over the past few years, and there is still a chance to see this experience. You can get tickets here.

The Swedish pop group ABBA, comprised of Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaenus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad were formed in 1972. Considered one of the most successful music groups of all time, ABBA got their big break in 1974 when they won the Eurovision Song Contest with their song ‘Waterloo’ at the Brighton Dome, United Kingdom. The track became their first Number 1 hit in the UK and would establish a momentum for the band as they went on to achieve a further eight Number 1 singles and ten Number 1 albums.

With a career spanning over five decades, the band made their comeback in 2021, after disbanding in 1982, when they announced ‘ABBA Voyage’ a live virtual concert and an album of the same name. The album peaked at Number 1 on the UK Official Singles Chart the week of its release. The concept of the band’s virtual concert ‘ABBA Voyage’ caught the attention of fans, spectators and news outlets alike due to its adoption of technology that had never been seen before during a live concert.

The virtual concert utilises a fusion of motion capture, visual effects, and a live band to showcase ABBA in concert as their 1977 selves. With visual effects and a live 10-piece band to accompany the pre-recorded backdrop of ABBA’s performance,  ABBA Voyage provides an atmospheric experience to attendees. The concert and its technological output cost a whopping $175 million to create, following the construction of a purpose-built venue, which seats 3000 people.

Hosting its first edition in May 2022, the live concert which takes place in East London, has since contributed £1.4 billion to the UK economy, including an additional turnover of £774.3 million in Gross Value Added (GVA) between May 2022 and May 2024.

The Sound Diplomacy has unveiled the socio-economic impact of ABBA Voyage, as it has been revealed attendees of the event spend on average £220 per day in London, in addition to the price of tickets. With that being said, ABBA’s economic influence is substantial as international visitors to the event have contributed £72.6 million, the local boroughs (Newham, Hackney, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest) £262.1 million whilst attendees outside of London contributed £142.2 million.

ABBA Voyage’s economic power is evident, not only due to its contribution to the economy but its creation of over 10,000 jobs, which are adjacent to the commencement and completion of each concert.

The sun sets on summer, but the memories live on at ABBA Arena. pic.twitter.com/Oo8lmYjRVo

— ABBA Voyage (@ABBAVoyage) September 22, 2024

The Major of London, Sadiq Khan discussed the prevalence of ABBA Voyage to London, stating: “ABBA Voyage has been a phenomenal success story for London, boosting our economy by more than £1bn and showing again why our capital is a global leader for music and culture”.

He continued to declare the show’s demand was due to “ABBA’s timeless popularity”. As ABBA Voyage has witnessed over 2 million visitors since 2022, it is clear their pop anthems created from infectious instrumentation and catchy lyricism have been the soundtrack for many generations.

As the virtual concert was meant to conclude in 2026, it is no doubt that due to its ongoing popularity and substantial economic benefits to London, that the virtual concert may be indefinitely present in London’s culture and music scene in the future and beyond 2026.

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