Ticketmaster is canceling and refunding all Ariana Grande tickets mistakenly released early for her Austin dates at Moody Center and has reset sales to a reopened Ticketmaster Request window ending at 11 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 12.
The venue said the problem began Monday, Feb. 9, when some seats for Grande’s Eternal Sunshine Tour appeared for purchase ahead of the planned request period, prompting buyers to complete transactions that are now being reversed. In a statement posted Tuesday, Feb. 10, Moody Center said the early on-sale resulted from a system issue and that the remedy is a full cancellation and refund of every ticket bought during the unintended release, while directing fans back to the request-only process for the June 24, June 26 and June 27 shows. The June 27 date was added after the first two Austin concerts were announced.
Under the reset process, fans must submit a request through Ticketmaster during the active window, and a request does not guarantee the opportunity to buy tickets. Moody Center said tickets for these performances are only available through the Ticketmaster Request system, and the new request window runs until Thursday’s 11 a.m. deadline. The technical error came as local demand intensified for the three-show run at Moody Center, 2001 Robert Dedman Drive, with many buyers watching closely for official time windows after the added third date.
The early-release cancellation also followed a separate ticketing complication involving previously resold tickets, according to Ticketmaster’s public explanation on Instagram. Ticketmaster said some tickets that had been bought through resellers were repossessed because the seller violated platform terms, and that affected buyers would receive priority within the request process. The chain of changes has left some Austin-area concertgoers uncertain about whether their prior purchases—both direct and resale—will ultimately convert into new purchase opportunities, while the public nature of the announcements fueled concerns in comment threads that scammers could exploit the confusion.
“We thought demand overloaded the system,” said Michael Rapino, CEO of Live Nation. “It turned out not to be true.” The Austin reset adds to Ticketmaster’s history of high-profile breakdowns around megastar tours, including the 2022 Taylor Swift on-sale that drew congressional scrutiny and renewed questions about market power and consumer protections. In 2025, the Federal Trade Commission sued ticket reseller Key Investment Group, alleging it used fake Ticketmaster accounts to buy inventory and inflate prices for Swift’s Eras Tour and other events.
Beyond the Austin incident, a U.S. trade body has alleged Ticketmaster and Live Nation used unfair tactics that can push buyers toward higher secondary-market prices, including deceptive pricing and misleading ticket limits. In separate reporting tied to court proceedings, internal communications attributed to a Ticketmaster regional director surfaced with dismissive language about customers and revenue-taking practices, amplifying skepticism when errors affect major on-sales. Grande has also previously addressed fans directly about resale problems, writing in 2025 that she had been working to redirect tickets from resellers to fans.
As previously reported in “Blankets, basslines, and belonging: Rock the Park returns to Mueller for a 17th season celebration of Austin music”, Austin’s live-music ecosystem has faced persistent tensions over access and affordability as demand rises. Next steps for Grande’s Austin shows now run through the reset request deadline; after the window closes, Ticketmaster is expected to notify selected requesters with opportunities to complete purchases, while others may receive no allocation.
“It turned out not to be true.” said Michael Rapino, CEO of Live Nation. Fans attempting to buy tickets are being told to rely on Ticketmaster’s request process rather than third-party listings, as both the venue and ticketing company emphasize that requests are the only sanctioned path and that refunds will be issued automatically for the canceled early-release purchases.
[A documentary-style photo of the exterior of Moody Center in Austin under daylight, with pedestrians nearby and minimal signage.](hero_moody_center_austin.jpg)
[A close-up documentary photo of a smartphone screen showing the Ticketmaster Request interface, held by a fan in natural light.](inline_ticketmaster_request_phone.jpg)
