Major Venue Responds to Outrage Over Concert Tickets for The Offspring and Simple Plan Australian Tour

A major Sydney venue has responded to backlash after a family claimed they were asked to pay $180 for a ticket to The Offspring and Simple Plan’s upcoming Australian tour for their eight-month-old child.

As reported by 7News, a woman claimed that, after being unable to secure a babysitter for the show taking place at Qudos Bank Arena on Sunday, May 11th, she contacted the venue to ask if she could bring the infant, which advised that the promoter would need to make that call.

The woman then claimed that the promoter, Destroy All Lines, told her that it was in fact Qudos that needed to make that decision.

A customer service rep for Qudos reportedly told the woman that she would need to purchase a full price ticket for her baby, regardless of age.

“I just laughed,” she said.

“I sent the reply to my husband and my friends and I said, ‘This is a joke, how do they justify this?’ It’s super annoying, to be honest, I can’t comprehend how they can justify making people pay that amount.

“It’s not even a discounted ticket, a lot of places, for example theme parks, if the child is under the age of two they can go for free.”

However, in a statement given to Rolling Stone AU/NZ, Qudos Bank Arena said the incident was simply a “miscommunication.”

“On investigating the customer feedback, it was discovered that the issue had been caused due to a miscommunication surrounding the conditions of entry when tickets were released for this event, which was promptly adjusted to align with the standard industry policy of allowing patrons 2-years or under to attend free of charge, provided they can sit on the lap of the adult,” the statement reads.

“The patron has been contacted to advise of this adjustment.”

The Offspring’s tour with Simple Plan kicks off in Adelaide this May, with stops confirmed for Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. Click here for more details.

The Offspring 2025 Australian Tour