Garth Brooks concerts in Florida canceled. Why?
Garth Brooks canceled all three concerts in Tampa, Fla. The reason: NHL Stanley Cup finals.
Garth Brooks accepts the milestone award at the 50th annual Academy of Country Music Awards at AT&T Stadium on Sunday, April 19, 2015, in Arlington, Texas.
(Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)
Tampa, Fla.
A couple of weeks ago, "Disney on Ice: Frozen" almost fell victim to the Tampa Bay Lightning's playoff run. Now, it's Garth Brooks.
Officials announced Sunday that all three Amalie Arena performances of the Garth Brooks World Tour with Trisha Yearwood have been canceled due to scheduling by the NHL and NBC on June 6 for the Stanley Cup Final.
Ticketholders will be refunded.
Officials considered moving the two scheduled Saturday Brooks performances to Sunday, but decided getting the equipment moved on such a tight schedule raised safety issues.
In a statement, Brooks said officials with Amalie Arena and the NHL did everything possible to remedy the situation. He says they will try to reschedule if they can find a date acceptable for both parties.
Brooks also congratulated the Lightning.
First of all, we would all like to congratulate the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Chicago Blackhawks for reaching the Stanley Cup Final. As we now know, Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final is being played on Saturday, June 6th. All parties looked into moving Saturday’s two Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood shows to Sunday. The issue of getting the network crews and their gear out of the building and getting our crews and gear into the building late Saturday/early Sunday for two shows on Sunday raises serious safety concerns. It is because of those safety concerns that the choice is being made to refund all shows and reschedule depending on finding a date that works for both the arena and the tour.
“This was a hard decision for everyone. We would like to thank Elmer Straub at Amalie Arena and Tod Leiweke with the Tampa Bay Lightning for working around the clock for the last 48 hours to find a remedy for the situation. We personally know Gary Bettman and are very familiar with the League and its players, coaches, and staff…they are all stand-up people. We are convinced everything that could have been done was done to try to remedy the situation. Congrats again to the City of Tampa, good luck, and we will be watching the series!!!”
The next stop on the Brooks tour is Birmingham, Ala., with three concerts on June 12 and 13.