Elton and his group are to perform in Gloucester as part of their 2015 European tour.
They will take the stage at Kingsholm Stadium on June 7.
Gloucester Rugby chief executive Stephen Vaughan could barely contain his happiness about the booking, which he hopes further puts the team’s Kingsholm HQ on the map as a live music venue. Tom Jones and Ronan Keating have previously played to thousands of fans there.
Mr Vaughan said: “We couldn’t be more excited about bringing one of the most highly acclaimed and successful solo artists of all time to Kingsholm next summer. It is a privilege for us to be able to host somebody that has achieved so much.
“We have held some successful concerts in the past but this really enhances our reputation as a venue for top quality acts and will be part of an exciting year for the club, culminating with the Rugby World Cup later in the year.
The tour will feature iconic numbers and classic album tracks from throughout the luminary’s hit-laden five-decade career, including a selection of songs from the album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, which recently celebrated its 40th anniversary.
Sir Elton said: “I am very much looking forward to playing my first show in Gloucester.”
Also for the first time, Elton will perform in Walsall. The rocker and his ensemble are to play the Banks’s Stadium on Saturday, June 13 – the first outdoor gig at the stadium since 1991 when West Midlands’ outfit The Wonder Stuff headlined at the venue.
It is hoped to extend the ground’s normal 11,300 capacity to around 17,000 for the event, with some seating set up on the pitch.
The approach from Elton’s team surprised and delighted club bosses who have been working behind the scenes for the last two months on the logistics of staging the concert.
Walsall FC club chief executive Stefan Gamble said they were ‘honoured’ to be able to welcome an entertainer of his calibre and added that the show would be a ‘ momentous day’ for the area.
It will mark a return to the West Midlands for the singer who played Wolverhampton’s Civic Hall in the 1970s. Elton remarked, “I am very much looking forward to returning to the West Midlands and playing my first show in Walsall.”
Tickets for both concerts go on sale Friday at 9 a.m.
