Press Release

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

U2 - JULY 16th & 17th CONCERTS POSTPONED TO 2011

As
announced earlier today, Live Nation has confirmed that the U2 360° North
American Tour will be postponed until 2011.

There
is no change to the European tour itinerary which is slated to start August 6th
in Turin.

U2's
Bono has now been discharged from Ludwig Maximilians-University (LMU) Hospital
in Munich where he underwent emergency surgery on Friday, following a back
injury. In order to fully recover, he is under doctor's orders to start a
rehabilitation program and to recuperate for at least eight weeks.

This
will necessitate the postponement of 16 shows on the U2 360° Tour from Salt Lake
City on June 3rd, through to New Jersey’s Meadowlands Stadium on July 19th
including the two concerts scheduled at the Hippodrome de Montreal on July 16th
and 17th.

Dr.
Muller Wohlfahrt confirmed, “Bono suffered severe compression of the sciatic
nerve.  On review of his MRI scan, I realized there was a serious tear in the
ligament and a herniated disc, and that conservative treatment would not
suffice. I recommended Bono have emergency spine surgery with Professor Tonn at
Munich’s LMU University Hospital on Friday.”

Professor
Tonn, who carried out the operation, added, “Bono was referred to me by Dr.
Muller Wohlfahrt late last week with a sudden onset disease.  He was already in
severe pain with partial paralysis in the lower leg.  The ligament surrounding
the disc had an 8mm tear and during surgery we discovered fragments of the disc
had traveled into the spinal canal.  This surgery was the only course of
treatment for full recovery and to avoid further paralysis.  Bono is now much
better, with complete recovery of his motor deficit.  The prognosis is
excellent, but to obtain a sustainable result, he must now enter a period of
rehabilitation."

Dr.
Muller Wohlfahrt continued, "We are treating Bono as we would treat any of our
athletes, and while the surgery has gone very well, the coming weeks are crucial
for a return to full health.  In the next days, he will start a light
rehabilitation program, with increasing intensity over the next 8 weeks.  In our
experience, this is the minimum time."
 
U2's manager, Paul McGuinness,
was also at the Hospital in Munich and said, "Our biggest and I believe best
tour has been interrupted and we’re all devastated.  For a performer who lives
to be on stage, this is more than a blow.  He feels robbed of the chance to do
what he does best and feels like he has badly let down the band and their
audience.  Which is of course nonsense.  His concerns about more than a million
ticket buyers whose plans have been turned upside down, we all share, but the
most important thing right now is that Bono make a full recovery.  We’re working
as fast as we can with Live Nation to reschedule these dates.”

Jacques Aubé, Vice President and General
Manager of evenko mentioned: “We understand the feeling of disappointment
Montreal U2 fans are experiencing for not being able to witness this
unbelievable concert this summer. However, we are pleased to announce that the 2
shows will be rescheduled for 2011 at  the Montreal Hippodrome. We encourage
fans to keep their tickets as they will be honoured for the new dates. We wish
Bono a complete and healthy recovery.”

We encourage fans to keep their tickets as they will be honoured for the new dates in 2011, to be announced shortly.