Download Festival has been cancelled for its 2020 Aussie run due to coronavirus fears a week ahead of the festival dates, a day after the World Health Organisation officially declared COVID-19 a pandemic.
The festival was set to bring a slew of heavy-hitters of the alt and metal music scenes like My Chemical Romance, Deftones, Jimmy Eat World, Clutch, In Flames, Ministry, and more for festival dates in Sydney and Melbourne.
Download announced the cancellation following the news that MCR had officially pulled out of the festival, citing the “current global situation”.
“As we are unable to deliver a complete line-up to meet the standard that Download fans both expect and deserve, we have very reluctantly made the decision to cancel Download Australia 2020,” the festival said in a statement issued on Friday.
“The Download team has been working around the clock to create an unforgettable experience for heavy music fans and we are devastated not be able to deliver this show to Australian Downloaders as planned.”
The festival is currently working with both MCR and Deftones to schedule separate headline shows in Australia this year, and will update fans as soon possible.
“We are also working with a number of artists who have official Download side shows scheduled, to add headline shows in Sydney and Melbourne next week, stay tuned for these dates.
“All ticket purchasers to the Download Melbourne and Sydney 2020 events will receive a full refund including booking and payment processing fees.
“We appreciate that the decision to cancel Download Australia will cause huge disappointment and may create major difficulty for ticket holders, for which we sincerely apologise.”
