Ed Sheeran to headline Abu Dhabi's new Off Limits festival in April

The British star will lead a bill of more than 20 artists

Ed Sheeran will play a full concert set at Off Limits. Getty Images

Ed Sheeran is to headline a new Abu Dhabi music festival next year.

Off Limits, to run at Etihad Park on April 26, will have the Shape of You singer lead a bill of more than 20 artists performing across two stages. The remaining acts will be announced in the lead-up to the event. Ticket registration on Platinumlist begins on Wednesday, followed by pre-sale on Thursday and general sale on Friday at 11am.

In an exclusive interview with The National, Sia Farr, founder of organisers Theory Eleven Entertainment, said the festival would follow an "open format", meaning it will encompass different genres, including pop, electronic and hip-hop. Regional artists will also be included in the line-up.

"It will be the type of festival where you will have mainstream pop moving into rock or electronic music," he said. "Considering the diversity of the audiences in Abu Dhabi and the UAE, this is an ideal place to create these different kinds of experiences and all-day festivals that will keep fans engaged with all the different artists."

Off Limits is planned as a 12-hour extravaganza, with doors opening at 2pm. Sheeran will play a full-length concert set, of around two hours, after which other artists will perform into the early hours.

"He is going to play a complete concert, which is usually unheard of in a festival, where headline acts often perform shortened sets," he explained.

Because of the festival format, Sheeran’s return to the UAE will see him perform with a different stage design. His two sold-out dates in Dubai’s Sevens Stadium in January saw him play on a bespoke circular stage. For Off Limits, Farr said Sheeran and all other acts would perform across two stages designed by Germany’s Florian Wieder, who is credited with designing the pop-up arena for Adele's summer residency in Munich in August.

"He handled the entire design for Adele’s shows, from the stage to the food and beverage areas," he said. "For Off Limits, he will create something unique to the festival that is ultra-modern, futuristic, and cohesive."

Running in partnership with DCT Abu Dhabi, the Off Limits festival follows the coming Coldplay concerts at Zayed Sports City Stadium in January as tourism drawcards. Farr says Abu Dhabi’s move to become a cultural and entertainment hub also follows a trend adopted by countries such as the UK and Germany.

"The economic footprint these shows leave is undeniable, and this is why we are seeing more festivals becoming greater tourism-driving factors than before," he said. "In a lot of ways, I think post-pandemic, many dynamics have changed. Well-established countries are leaning heavily into destination tourism, and Abu Dhabi has been leading in that. I think destinations now don't look at festivals or concerts through an entertainment lens, but an economic one as well."