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What Abbamondi said happened
BSE Global, the organization that operated Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, was preparing to replace its ticketing provider as its Ticketmaster contract approached expiration in 2021. Former CEO John Abbamondi testified that BSE evaluated Ticketmaster, SeatGeek and AXS, and selected SeatGeek for what he described as better financial terms and technology. The parties disputed when the Ticketmaster contract expired and what rights Ticketmaster had to respond to competing offers. The Verge’s trial reporting
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Abbamondi testified that telling Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino about the decision led to a tense call. According to the reporting, Rapino referred to the new UBS Arena as a possible competitor for Live Nation shows. Abbamondi said Barclays subsequently experienced a dramatic decline in Live Nation bookings. That is his account of the sequence and his interpretation of it; it does not independently establish that Live Nation instructed anyone to move a particular artist’s show.
Where Billie Eilish fits
Eilish had canceled New York-area shows in 2020 during the pandemic. Abbamondi testified that he expected a future show to be booked at Barclays, but her 2021 return-to-touring stop was at UBS Arena. Barclays was reportedly told that the booking was the artist’s decision. The account does not identify who made the venue choice or establish Eilish’s reasoning.
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- Billie Eilish's third studio album, HIT ME HARD AND SOFT, released via Darkroom/Interscope Records is her most daring body of work to date, a diverse yet cohesive collection of songs - ideally listened to in its entirety from beginning to end - does exactly as the album title suggests; hits you hard and soft both lyrically and sonically, while bending genres and defying trends along the way
Allegation versus established finding
The key distinction is between Abbamondi’s testimony about a booking and a finding that Live Nation caused that booking. The testimony supplies a chronology that could support an allegation of retaliation: the ticketing switch, the reported decline in Live Nation bookings, and Eilish’s appearance at a competing arena instead of Barclays. It does not, on its own, prove the causal link.
At the broader antitrust trial, the states argued that Live Nation and Ticketmaster’s presence across ticketing, promotion and amphitheaters gave them leverage over venues considering another ticketing provider. Live Nation rejected that account and argued it competed lawfully. These were opposing trial positions, not neutral findings. The Verge’s report on opening statements
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What the 2026 antitrust verdict did—and did not—decide
On April 15, 2026, a jury returned liability findings for the states on claims that remained at trial. New York Attorney General Letitia James described findings involving Ticketmaster’s position in primary ticketing for major concert venues, Live Nation’s position in large amphitheaters, and anticompetitive conduct. The New York Attorney General’s announcement
Those broader findings should not be treated as a verdict that Live Nation retaliated against Barclays by redirecting Eilish. The materials available here do not show that the jury specifically decided the cause of her booking at UBS Arena.
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Live Nation said it would challenge liability and damages after the verdict. In its April 15 statement, the company characterized the per-ticket award as applying to a limited set of tickets and estimated that aggregate single damages would be below $150 million before trebling. Those are Live Nation’s descriptions and position, not a finding about Eilish’s booking. Live Nation’s April 15 statement
A June 30, 2026 SEC filing said the court had directed the parties to propose a schedule for post-trial motions and a remedies phase, and that argument on Live Nation’s post-trial motions was scheduled for July 31, 2026. That date has passed, but the filing does not establish what happened at or after the hearing. Live Nation’s June 30 SEC filing The DOJ case page also lists a proposed final judgment and related settlement documents filed in June 2026. DOJ case page
Rank #4
- Billie Eilish's third studio album, HIT ME HARD AND SOFT, released via Darkroom/Interscope Records is her most daring body of work to date, a diverse yet cohesive collection of songs - ideally listened to in its entirety from beginning to end - does exactly as the album title suggests; hits you hard and soft both lyrically and sonically, while bending genres and defying trends along the way
Do not confuse this with Eilish’s 2019 Chicago venue change
A separate incident moved Eilish’s two 2019 Chicago shows from Aragon Ballroom to the larger United Center. Live Nation attributed that move to production scale, logistics and travel time. It said reassigned general-admission ticket holders would receive early entry, a food-and-beverage gift card and presale access, and that the intent was to improve the show experience. That Chicago move is not the Barclays–UBS booking allegation. The Chicago venue-change report
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