Billy Idol to Rock Athens, Greece Next Summer

By Elena Marika Konstantinou

November 13, 2026

Athens, dig out the leather jacket. Billy Idol is coming to Greece next summer, and the man behind "Rebel Yell" and "White Wedding" is bringing a full rock show with him.

Release Athens announced on November 11 that Idol will perform on Tuesday, July 6, 2027, at the Markopoulo Complex, the festival's new home on the former Olympic grounds in Markopoulo, in the Attica countryside outside Athens. The festival says more acts for the night will be announced soon.

Tickets go on sale this Saturday, November 14, at noon Greek time through the Release Athens website and More.com. Ta Nea reports that the first batch costs €65 before the price moves to €70, while a limited run of VIP tickets starts at €200 and comes with an elevated viewing area, an open bar, a separate entrance and private parking.

The timing is very rock 'n' roll. November 14 is also the night Idol gets inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Los Angeles, alongside his longtime guitarist Steve Stevens. The Associated Press reports that this year's class also includes Oasis, Wu-Tang Clan, Phil Collins, Sade and Iron Maiden. So Greek fans can grab their tickets on the same day he picks up one of music's biggest honors.

If you only know the platinum spikes and the famous lip curl, here is the backstory. Idol started out fronting the British punk band Generation X, which released three albums between 1977 and 1981. In 1982 he went solo with Stevens by his side, and the hits kept coming: "Dancing With Myself," "White Wedding," "Rebel Yell," "Eyes Without a Face," "Flesh for Fantasy" and "Cradle of Love," plus his take on "Mony Mony." Early MTV did the rest.

He is not just coasting on the classics, either. In 2025 he released Dream Into It, his first full album of new material in 11 years, and in 2026 came the documentary Billy Idol Should Be Dead, which looks back at his famously eventful life and career.

The venue is part of the story too. Release Athens has moved to the Markopoulo Complex, which will have two stages, one of them inside a 4,000 square meter tent. The festival says that covered stage will let people arrive early and catch the opening acts out of the sun, which anyone who has stood in an Athens crowd in July will appreciate. There is parking for thousands of cars, plus shuttle buses from nearby Metro stations.

It has been a big stretch for rock fans in Greece. Rod Stewart played his first Athens show last December, and now Idol is next in line. Just note that July 6 falls on a Tuesday, so you may want to book Wednesday morning off.