PHILADELPHIA — Ed Sheeran opened his Loop Tour stop at Lincoln Financial Field alone on Saturday, September 19, 2026, and for the first time addressed the controversy that erupted after American rapper Macklemore was dropped from the tour over pro-Palestinian remarks, the BBC reported from the stadium (updated around 01:28 BST Sept. 20).

“I never wanted to be an activist musician but this has put me in the middle of an important and passionate argument about free speech and the most complex political issue on the planet,” Sheeran said onstage, according to the BBC. He said his concerts have always been “a safe space for everyone,” that he is committed to fans, and that he had made “mistakes” during “difficult decisions.” He has said promoters — not him — decided to drop Macklemore.

Stripped show, empty seats, cheap tickets

Saturday’s show was the first since Macklemore’s removal; Lukas Graham, Aaron Rowe, and others also withdrew, the BBC and Associated Press accounts said, leaving Sheeran without openers. The start was pushed back. When the concert began there were empty seats, the BBC reported. Ticket prices for remaining U.S. Loop dates had fallen — some as low as $32 (£24), per the BBC — and fans reported refund chatter, though Ticketmaster and Messina Touring Group did not confirm reimbursements, the BBC said.

FOX 29 reported ahead of the show that the Linc start was set for 8 p.m., with Philadelphia police, SEPTA, and venue organizers planning heightened security after a protest was scheduled near the sports-complex transit stop. The BBC said a few dozen protesters waved flags outside the nearest transit stop as ticket holders streamed in; the concert proceeded largely unfettered.

Free-speech fight around a private tour call

CBS News Philadelphia reported that CAIR Philadelphia and other critics framed Macklemore’s removal as raising free-speech and civil-rights questions, including whether public entities tied to Lincoln Financial Field were consulted, and that police planned Civil Affairs coverage for protests. That is a private tour-and-venue decision under cancel pressure and speech politics — not a government speech code — even as advocacy groups demand answers from stadium and city stakeholders.

An artist saying he never wanted the activist middle while still walking onstage alone is the story: promoters made a call, openers walked, tickets got cheaper, and the free-speech argument followed him into a football stadium anyway.

Sources