The Crystal Ball: Albums and Tours

Original Story by Aaron J Sams (2026-03-15)

It’s been a while since we did one of these. For those who wish to remain ‘spoiler free’ about what is coming next throughout the year, you may want to skip this one.

We are going to start with a little reminder.

Here at U2Songs we only post information we believe to be true. We wait until we have at least a couple of reliable sources, presenting us with the same, or similar information before sharing that information if it is about something not yet announced. We usually know how our sources get this information, and do not just post random tips. This allows us to be as accurate as possible when reporting on not-yet-announced information. Things can change so it is recommended to check back for more recent information as dates draw near.

The album, being worked on for a late-September/early-October release date, will see U2 release their first full album of new music since 2017’s Songs of Experience. The band have been working to finalize the album this month, to get it in the queue for a release later in the year. The album is expected to be a single album release, and unlike “Days of Ash” will be made available in physical as well as digital formats from the day of release.

U2 formed on September 25, 1976, and the release date of the album will mark fifty years together as a band. Even if the date shifts from the anniversary somewhat, expect that the album will celebrate 50 years of the band working together. Bono shared in the recent Propaganda magazine that the album is “more songs of celebration than lamentation.” He also shares, “The LP/album we’ve been working on has a very different kind of musical mood and narrative, a more defiantly joyful kind of feel to take on these anxious times…almost a carnival vibe.” What better reason for celebration than spending 50 years together as a band?

Expect a single out a few months ahead of the album, and promotional appearances to accompany both the single and later this year, the album.

Bono also hinted at a full tour in the more recent interviews in Propaganda. “We’re gonna try to find that carnival atmosphere in our audience, where hopefully we can both show each other not just where we are at but where we want to be at…Serious fun is required. We can’t always be letting the bad news drown out the good news of just waking up in the morning and being together in the same place…we’re all much better live!!”

Previously reliable sources have shared that the tour planning is moving ahead. And it sounds like the band has been finalizing some of those plans in recent weeks. Our mailbox has been filled recently with little notes about what is planned next.

The next tour is expected to be a stadium tour, and will start in early 2027. We are told it is most likely to start with a South American leg (which will likely include Mexico), and will continue onto Europe for a second leg in the summer of 2027. It is likely this tour will be scheduled to happen over a couple of years, and the band are looking forward to taking the shows to their fans. If U2 do start in South America, it will be the first time that they’ve chosen to start a tour in that region. We are hearing the tour information from multiple sources, but we’re still almost a year away from those dates, so this information should be considered a rumour until officially announced, and while it sounds like some planning is done the itinerary is likely not yet final.

U2 have only toured South America for PopMart, Vertigo, the U2360 tour, and the Joshua Tree 2017 tour. The last time U2 played a leg through this region they started in Mexico City, in October 2017, and traveled down through to Colombia, Argentina, Chile and Brazil. A shorter run in 2011 saw the band playing Chile, Argentina, and Brazil. In 2006, the Vertigo tour went from Mexico, to Brazil, Chile and Argentina. PopMart started in Brazil in January 1998 and also hit Argentina and Brazil. We wouldn’t be surprised if the next tour opens in Mexico, and then moves to South America in stadiums.

The European dates are also planned for stadiums and we are told that the band are looking at doing an extensive tour of Europe. We are told there are venue holds now in place for stadiums in multiple cities in the UK, Italy and Germany and that four dates for Croke Park are likely now on hold at this time for summer 2027. Just because the dates are on hold, does not mean all of those dates will be used for the final itinerary, but it is a sign we are on track for a tour next year, and we are starting to get a feel for what is planned.

We are told to expect tickets to go on sale for the first legs of the tour in October – November. These are only rumours of the initial dates. Additional legs will follow and we are told the tour will go into 2028.

Bono also shared in Propaganda, “There’s a lot more than 25 songs in the works…but I’d say about 25 are worth considering for U2 projects in the next few years. The album contenders are very different in mood and theme to the ones we’ve chosen to put out on the ‘Days of Ash’ EP.”

That Propaganda interview also gave a few hints about those other things. Asked about how Ed Sheeran got involved on the album Bono mentioned, “When Ed was over in Dublin to work on songs for a whole other project, I noticed he and I have some other things in common…”

Bono continued to talk about the visit, sharing “His song writing partner Johnny McDaid, the keyboard player in Snow Patrol, he’s a serious talent too. We had such a good time all together – there might have been a certain amount of Guinness involved – and we wrote songs in the small hours. Usually, when that happens, you wake up the next day feeling like shite and the songs aren’t quite as good as you remembered them…Not this time, there’s some gems in there. We might even have a folk album in us if U2 ever wanted to put one out. Ed Sheeran is well versed in Irish folk music!”

This isn’t the first mention of Irish folk music. In late 2024 Edge shared, “Since albums like October and War we haven’t really looked at the Irish influence. Since then we’ve gained an outside perspective and become more aware of the uniqueness of Irish Music. Now it seems like a new place for us to go. It could yield a U2 album, a side project like Passengers. We’re not thinking too much about where it will lead.” Edge also shared “Right now there’s a bunch of projects in line, there’s a new U2 album that we are working on, that’s what we are working on with Adam and Larry. There’s a kind of mad sci-fi Irish folk project that Bono and I are working on. Various different solo recordings, that we have no idea where they will go. And don’t need to at this point. We’re enjoying the opportunity to just create. We can think about where these songs belong after the fact. It’s all for us a part of the curiosity that’s always driven us, I don’t think that’s ever going to let up.”

Edge, speaking to Jo Whiley in late 2024 revealed “Bono and I are working on some crazy sci-fi Irish folk music. Which could end up becoming part of the U2 album. We’re not sure yet. We’ll see. Part of our kind of process is to just go so wildly away from off track, and the process of bringing things back on track is kind of how you get some unique sounding music…We have Brian Eno involved, and a bunch of…some beautiful Irish musicians, some incredibly talented…Colm Mac Con Iomaire who is this fiddle player, and Dermot Sheehy who is this bodhrán player, they came in the other day. They’re astonishing players. We’re excited about that.” Cormac Begley has also been mentioned in regards to this project. Adam Clayton has confirmed that the band are working with Eno, likely on this project.

We do suspect from these comments that U2 have at least a couple of projects on the go, one the Irish folk material, and one a more traditional U2-as-four-piece album. It still is not clear to us which one of these is the one they are finishing up for an album release later this year, and which work might be saved for other albums / EPs.

The year ahead looks like it will be an exciting one. We’ll be keeping track of it all here at U2Songs. We would suggest keeping an eye on our shows archive for news going forward on the tour.

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