AC/DC fans in Toronto have been left sweating harder than Angus Young beneath the stage lights after a violent thunderstorm caused major damage to Rogers Stadium — less than two weeks before the rock legends are due to perform.
The 50,000-capacity outdoor venue was battered by extreme weather on Wednesday, 2 September, with torrential rain, huge hailstones and winds reportedly exceeding 80mph tearing through the stadium.
Entire sections of the northern seating area were left twisted, buckled and partially collapsed, with rows of seats ripped from their positions and debris scattered around the site.
It appears Toronto has been properly Thunderstruck — although this is one AC/DC reference nobody wanted to see brought to life. ⚡
🏟️ Will the AC/DC concert still happen?
AC/DC are scheduled to bring their colossal Power Up Tour to Rogers Stadium on:
📅 Wednesday, 16 September 2026
📍 Rogers Stadium, Toronto, Ontario
🎤 Special guests: The Pretty Reckless
⏰ Show begins at 7pm
At the time of writing, the concert has not been cancelled or postponed and remains listed by Live Nation. However, the venue must now undergo structural assessments and extensive safety work before thousands of fans can be allowed through the gates. Live Nation’s event listing
Live Nation Canada confirmed that Rogers Stadium had sustained significant damage but, thankfully, nobody was injured during the storm.
That is the most important news here. Stadiums can be repaired, tour dates can be rearranged and amps can be plugged back in — people cannot.
🚧 Toronto orders urgent repairs
The City of Toronto has issued Live Nation with a seven-part order covering the damaged stadium.
The promoter must prevent access to the affected areas, appoint an engineer to inspect the structure and provide the city with its findings and proposed repairs by 8 September. A further progress update is required by 11 September, leaving only a few days before AC/DC are due to hit the stage. Global News
Any reconstruction work will also require the appropriate building permit.
City officials reportedly found that portions of the stadium’s northern structure had collapsed, seats had been displaced and parts of the venue could pose a risk to public safety.
In short, this isn’t a case of replacing a few plastic chairs and giving the place a quick sweep before opening the gates. There is some serious graft ahead, butt.
⚡ A race against the clock
Rogers Stadium only opened in June 2025 as a temporary outdoor concert venue on the former Downsview Airport site. It has already welcomed massive acts including Oasis, Coldplay, Foo Fighters and System of a Down.
The stadium is expected to operate for approximately five years before closing around 2030 — but Mother Nature clearly fancied bringing the demolition schedule forward.
Engineers and technical teams now face a frantic race to determine whether the damaged sections can be repaired, isolated or safely rebuilt before AC/DC arrive.
The Toronto performance is one of the final shows on the band’s globe-conquering Power Up Tour, making it an especially important date for Canadian fans who have waited years to witness Brian Johnson, Angus Young and the gang unleash classics such as Back in Black, Highway to Hell, T.N.T. and You Shook Me All Night Long.
🎟️ Advice for ticket holders
Fans should keep hold of their tickets and avoid making any changes until an official announcement is issued by AC/DC, Live Nation or Rogers Stadium.
Anyone travelling to Toronto should also keep an eye on hotel and transport cancellation policies while the venue assessment continues.
For now, the gig is still officially scheduled — but everything depends on whether the stadium can be declared completely safe before 16 September.
Here’s hoping the engineers can fix the damage, the amps can be switched on and Toronto gets the full AC/DC experience it has been promised.
Because after surviving one almighty thunderstorm, the city deserves to be Thunderstruck properly. ⚡🤘🔥
The Riff Report will bring you further updates as soon as the concert’s status is confirmed.
Proudly Welsh. Proudly Loud. Zero Apologies.
