British heavy metal legends IRON MAIDEN have announced the North American leg of their massive “Run For Your Lives” world tour, celebrating the band’s 50th anniversary.
The tour will bring MAIDEN’s full-scale outdoor production — the kind that makes pyrotechnics departments nervous — to stadiums and amphitheaters across the U.S. and Canada in late summer and fall 2026. The band will also headline Louder Than Life Festival in Kentucky on September 17.
Joining them for the run are two pillars of thrash metal history: MEGADETH, who are on what’s being billed as their final tour, and ANTHRAX, appearing on select major shows.
Steve Harris: “We’re looking forward to bringing this one to North America”
Bassist and founder Steve Harris says the upcoming tour is designed to let fans experience the show on the scale it deserves:
“We are greatly looking forward to bringing this Run For Your Lives tour to North America and hope the fans enjoy seeing the show and hearing the setlist as much as we do playing it. It’s an added bonus to have a few of our good friends on the tour with us. MEGADETH are playing all the shows and it’s an honor to have them join us on their last-ever tour. We also have ANTHRAX with us on the bigger shows… We’re delighted to have both bands with us and know our fans will enjoy seeing them.”
In other words — a triple lineup that could melt half the continent.
Bruce Dickinson: “This whole tour has been such great fun”
Vocalist Bruce Dickinson promises a setlist loaded with the band’s most celebrated classics from their first nine albums — basically everything you’ve ever yelled along to in a car.
“We’ve got all the big ones from that early period including Hallowed Be Thy Name, Run to the Hills, The Trooper, Number of the Beast, Killers, Powerslave, 2 Minutes to Midnight… and some of them we haven’t played in the U.S. for over 20 years!”
He also calls it “a 50th birthday party” — one that apparently involves flamethrowers, multiple Eddies, and a singer who still hits the high notes after half a century.
Rod Smallwood: “Fans certainly won’t be disappointed”
Manager Rod Smallwood added that the production is scaled up for larger outdoor venues, promising MAIDEN’s most ambitious North American tour yet.
“The scale and incredible visual aspects of this show deserve larger venues than the arenas we have generally played in the past. Fans certainly won’t be disappointed in the show or the setlist — that’s for sure!”
He also mentioned that the beloved Eddie’s Pop-up Dive Bar and Trooper VIP Experience — staples of MAIDEN’s European run — are expected to make their North American debut. Because nothing says “family-friendly heavy metal” like beer, battle jackets, and an inflatable demon.
A Gentle Reminder: Put the Phones Away
In true MAIDEN fashion, the band is politely asking fans to experience the concerts “in the moment” — meaning, without filming everything through their phones.
“If a so-called fan near you thinks they are special and filming what they selfishly want,” reads the official statement, “please just ask them, very politely of course, to put their phone somewhere the sun doesn’t shine.”
A fair request — after all, it’s hard to Run to the Hills when everyone’s holding up a screen.
Tour Dates:
Aug. 29 – Toronto, ON – Scotiabank Arena *
Sep. 03 – Montréal, QC – Parc Jean-Drapeau *^
Sep. 05 – Harrison, NJ – Sports Illustrated Stadium *^
Sep. 09 – Boston, MA – TD Garden *
Sep. 11 – Bristow, VA – Jiffy Lube Live *
Sep. 12 – Charlotte, NC – PNC Music Pavilion *
Sep. 15 – Hershey, PA – Hersheypark Stadium *
Sep. 17 – Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life Festival
Sep. 19 – Shakopee, MN – Mystic Lake Amphitheater *
Sep. 22 – Chicago, IL – Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre *
Sep. 25 – Los Angeles, CA – BMO Stadium *^
Sep. 29 – San Antonio, TX – Alamodome *^
(* with MEGADETH • ^ with ANTHRAX)
For a band celebrating five decades of screaming, galloping, and outlasting nearly everyone else in metal, Run For Your Lives sounds like more of a challenge than a warning — but if anyone’s earned the right to keep running, it’s Iron Maiden.
