Why BTS World Tour Tickets Took Longer Time To Sell Full Stadium At ONE Venue Unlike Other US Cities?

BTS upcoming world tour following the release of the band's new album ARIRANG is going to be a mammoth event. Ahead of the BTS World Tour Arirang 2026, the K-pop legends, made up of Jin, J-Hope, Suga, RM, Jimin, V and Jungkook, are setting a new benchmark at every step. The OT7 created a new record by selling the concert tickets within a few minutes, forcing BigHit Music to add two more stopovers in the US due to unexpected ticket demand. While at every centre, ARMYs went into overdrive despite long digital queues and international travel plans, one particular venue lagged. Infact, for a long time, it could not achieve a full sell-out as compared to the other cities of the US. Even though the venue has previously hosted a successful two-day

concert by Coldplay, BTS lagged.The upcoming world tour marks the full-group comeback of OT7 on stage, after almost three years due to the temporary hiatus of its members due to their mandatory military service. While the global ARMYs is holding its breath, things seem a tad different at Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso, Texas.

Why is a show at El Paso a rare feat?

BTS is set to make history with its North American leg of the world tour. That's because the K-pop royalty will be the first Korean artists to perform at Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso, Stanford Stadium, Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore and Arlington AT&T Stadium. Infact, the group will also become the first K-pop act in history to hold a concert at the Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso, Texas.

El Paso lags behind other cities in ticket sales

El Paso will host BTS on May 2-3. Just like other centres, the city also started ticket sales on January 22 for ARMY global membership and general sales for fans on January 24. But the venue stood out due to showing a larger inventory of unsold seats compared with many other stops on the tour. According to KTEP Media, pre-sale numbers for El Paso could not match the trend of quick sell-outs seen in many other cities. Some saw it as a concerning trend, sparking online conversation among fans across the world, since it contrasts with the other major stops like Tampa, Florida and the Bay Area, which were sold out quickly, and even additional dates were added to their schedule.

Why El Paso failed to keep up with the ticket sales?

ARMYs discussed that the primary reason could be the city's geographic and social context. El Paso is located on the U.S.–Mexico border, an area with active Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations. This triggered concerns around travel, local immigration enforcement presence, and perceptions of safety, impacting the ticket-sale due to travel hesitation about staying in a border city with intense scrutiny.Some even stated that El Paso's smaller airport and relative connectivity compared with other US cities could also have an impact.

El Paso, the last resort?

A fan explained the situation on X (formerly Twitter), "i need you all to understand one thing. The presale required a membership, which costs money, and even with that membership, you could only choose 3 cities. The cities that still have some tickets left are not as popular or have priority on the list, like let's say, Vegas, LA, Chicago, East Rutherford... also a lot of people bought the membership and didn't sign up for the sale. once general opens all those seats are going to be GONE. people who literally signed up for the sale and didn't manage to get tickets mostly don't even have access to buy for those venues at the moment"One of the positives here is that those fans who failed to buy tickets at other major venues could quickly turn towards centres like El Paso that still kept unsold inventory. The tickets were priced much lower than remaining US cities, starting at $117.

About ARIRANG, additional world tour shows

BTS is set release its brand new fifth album ARIRANG, followed by embarking on an extensive world tour spanning 2026-2027. It was first announced with 79 shows, but seeing the huge turnout of ARMYs queuing up to book their tickets, the organisers added two more shows in North America - Tampa (Florida) and Stanford (California).