Download Festival has two out of three main stage headliners for 2027 confirmed, with plenty of “exciting plans” in the works.
Speaking to Music Week, promoter Kam Haq and marketing SVP Glen Littlewood suggested that the festival’s hot streak is set to continue.
Last year’s edition, with three brand new headliners in Green Day, Sleep Token and Korn, saw Download win Festival Of The Year at the Music Week Awards last month.
And even though the team were clearly overjoyed with the victory, they suggested there would be no time to revel too long in the moment.
“We’re already deep into planning for next year now as well, two of the three headliners are locked in, so there is lots of exciting stuff to come next year as well,” said Haq.
Pressed for hints as to who is in line to top the bill, he added: “There’s one band who's never headlined the festival before – it should be an exciting one…”
We are the biggest rock festival, so that’s why it's a goal to play Download for bands
Kam Haq, Download
Before that, though, there are surprises in store for this summer’s edition, which takes place this weekend, as Limp Bizkit, Guns N’ Roses and Linkin Park top the bill.
“There's a couple of surprises [in store],” Haq said. “A couple of surprises in District X, maybe a secret band in the main arena, too…”
District X, launched in 2023, welcomes campers before the music on the main stages begins, and last year’s bill included the Vengaboys.
“It's become a festival within a festival,” said Haq. “Obviously, now we’ve set a precedent having Vengaboys play last year, and now having Five play this year in District X. I have to give a shout to Jenny Cotter and Dannika Webber, who booked District X, they pulled off a blinder with it.”
“In those first two days, we get 40-50,000 people on site and they're all in District X with a huge amount of entertainment and activations going on,” added Littlewood. “And then, from everything from the toilets to the track lanes, there's been so much put in to keep levelling up the experience, which we’re going to continue to do.”
“We've made some massive improvements this year,” Haq said. “The main stage is bigger than ever, the second stage is bigger than ever, there are loads of improvements in production, better facilities in the campsites… everything. We’re really excited.”
Looking back on the 2025 iteration of the Live Nation-run Download, Haq hinted that the stars aligned.
“Rock as a genre is stronger than ever, there's newer fans coming through,” he explained. “I mean, we see the audience now at Download and it’s such a young audience that is getting into rock music and discovering these acts. Korn are trending on TikTok now, and for Sleep Token, TikTok, again, has made them huge. And then you've seen the generational thing with Green Day, where you've got parents with their kids, people who were brought up on Green Day are now taking their children to see them for the first time.”
There's been so much put in to keep levelling up the experience, which we’re going to continue to do
Glen Littlewood, Live Nation
“Download is a truly special place,” he continued. “It's a very family friendly festival, now you see grandparents, parents and kids all coming along, and people who started going to the festival 20-something years ago are now going with their kids. It's a very special thing.”
Haq paid special tribute to last year’s trio of headliners.
“Line-up wise, we knew we were going into a more curated direction and that we were going younger with bands and having three brand new headliners as well was huge for us,” he said. “We’d never had Green Day headline the festival before, for Sleep Token it was their first time headlining the festival after getting a No.1 album, and then Korn finally levelling up to headline was a huge moment for them, a band that has worked their way up from playing Donnington on the small stage at Monsters Of Rock, to playing midway up the main stage, and then finally headlining it.”
He described 2025 as “honestly, probably one of the best years ever”.
“The weather was incredible, which as we all know is the true festival headliner!” he added. “But with everything from the headliners down, we couldn't have asked for a stronger year.”
Finally, Haq spoke about the enduring appeal of the event and why it remains such a big draw in the calendar.
“Not to toot our own horn, but it is the premier rock festival in Europe,” Haq said. “It's a lot of bands, and it’s the ultimate stage for them to be on. And we are the biggest in Europe. I mean, people forget Download is, actually, the second biggest festival in the UK besides Glastonbury. We are the biggest rock festival, so that’s why it's a goal to play Download for bands.”
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