Live Review: Foo Fighters - Berlin 2026

Olympiastadion, Berlin, Germany
1st July 2026
Foo Fighters - “Take Cover Tour” 2026 - Support: Fat Dog, IDLES

Berlin had been waiting for this evening for quite some time. FOO FIGHTERS returned to the German capital for one of the biggest Rock events of the summer, bringing their stadium-sized energy to the historic Olympiastadion. With FAT DOG and IDLES as support acts, the line-up offered far more than a simple warm-up before the headliner. It was an evening built on contrast, volume, attitude and the kind of live energy that only works when every band involved is willing to give everything.

FAT DOG opened the afternoon at 16:30 and immediately made it clear that they were not interested in playing things safe. The London-based newcomers brought their wonderfully chaotic mixture of Punk, Electronica, Industrial energy and Alternative madness to a huge stadium stage and somehow managed to make the space feel considerably less polite within minutes.

IDLES followed at 17:25 and delivered exactly the kind of set one would expect from them: direct, physical, political, loud and completely committed. The Bristol band did not perform like a support act merely filling time before the headliner. They used their slot with the confidence of a band that knows exactly what it stands for.



Only after both support acts had finished did the evening take its unexpected turn. Shortly before the FOO FIGHTERS were due to begin, the weather situation changed dramatically. A thunderstorm warning forced the organisers to temporarily clear the infield for safety reasons. After FAT DOG and IDLES had already played, thousands of visitors on the pitch were asked to leave the standing area and move into safer parts of the stadium.



Naturally, this created a moment of uncertainty. The audience had already settled in, the anticipation for the FOO FIGHTERS was enormous, and suddenly everyone had to wait. Yet the mood remained surprisingly calm. People followed the instructions, checked the sky, discussed whether the show would still start as planned and waited for the situation to improve. Fortunately, the storm passed, the infield was reopened and the audience slowly returned to its place in front of the stage.



The delay was unavoidable, but it also changed the emotional temperature of the evening. By the time the lights finally went down and the FOO FIGHTERS appeared, the crowd was more than ready.


Fat Dog

FAT DOG are one of those bands that seem almost impossible to describe in a single genre. Their sound moves somewhere between Post Punk, Electronic music, Rave, Industrial, Alternative Rock and complete controlled chaos. It is loud, strange, physical and intentionally excessive.

Music & Performance
Opening a stadium show is never easy, especially when much of the audience is still arriving, finding drinks, meeting friends or simply waiting for the headliner. FAT DOG did not appear to care about any of that. From the opening song ‘Cancel Me (I’m Tired)’, they threw themselves into the performance with impressive force.



Their short set was frantic, unpredictable and full of nervous energy. ‘Running’ and ‘King of the Slugs’ pushed the audience further into their strange world, while ‘All the Same’ and ‘Peace Song’ showed that behind the chaos there is genuine songwriting and a clear artistic identity. They may not have been known to everyone in the stadium beforehand, but by the end of their set they had certainly left an impression.

Setlist
01. Cancel Me (I’m Tired)
02. Running
03. King of the Slugs
04. All the Same
05. Peace Song


IDLES

IDLES have long since outgrown the status of a secret tip. The Bristol formation has become one of the most important British guitar bands of recent years, combining Post Punk intensity with political awareness, social commentary, emotional directness and a stage presence that always feels honest rather than calculated.

Music & Performance
IDLES entered the stage with the confidence of a band fully aware of its own strength. Opening with ‘Levitator’, they immediately created a very different atmosphere from Fat Dog. Where the opener had felt chaotic and unpredictable, IDLES were focused, heavy and purposeful. ‘Never Fight A Man With A Perm’ and ‘Mother’ quickly showed why the band has earned such a dedicated following. Joe Talbot commanded the stage not through theatrical posing, but through conviction. Every movement and every word felt grounded in something real.



The set moved through fan favourites and newer material with impressive force. ‘Gift Horse’, ‘Mr. Motivator’ and ‘I’m Scum’ brought raw energy, while ‘The Wheel’ and ‘Divide and Conquer’ added weight and tension. By the time ‘Danny Nedelko’, ‘Dancer’ and the closing ‘Rottweiler’ arrived, IDLES had turned the vast Olympiastadion into something that felt much closer to a packed club than an early evening stadium slot. It was a powerful reminder that support acts can do far more than simply prepare the audience. Sometimes they raise the entire level of the evening.

Setlist
01. Levitator
02. Never Fight A Man With A Perm
03. Mother
04. Gift Horse
05. Mr. Motivator
06. I’m Scum
07. The Wheel
08. Divide and Conquer
09. Car Crash
10. Danny Nedelko
11. Dancer
12. Rottweiler


Foo Fighters

FOO FIGHTERS were formed in Seattle in 1995 by Dave Grohl after the end of NIRVANA. What began as a personal studio project eventually grew into one of the biggest Rock bands in the world. Over the past three decades, the band has created a catalogue that bridges Alternative Rock, Post-Grunge, melodic Stadium Rock and emotional songwriting.



Albums such as ‘The Colour and the Shape’, ‘There Is Nothing Left to Lose’, ‘One by One’, ‘Wasting Light’, ‘Concrete and Gold’, ‘Medicine at Midnight’ and ‘But Here We Are’ have produced songs that have long become part of modern Rock history. ‘Everlong’, ‘My Hero’, ‘Learn to Fly’, ‘The Pretender’, ‘Best of You’, ‘Times Like These’ and ‘Walk’ are not merely successful singles. They have become communal experiences, written for the moment when thousands of people sing them together.



Music & Performance
When the Foo Fighters finally entered the stage at 19:35, the frustration of the weather delay disappeared instantly. ‘All My Life’ opened the set with exactly the kind of force needed after an enforced break. The stadium erupted, and from that moment on the evening belonged entirely to Dave Grohl and his band.

Grohl addressed the delay in the show, apologising to the audience for the late start caused by the thunderstorm situation. Of course, nobody blamed the band for the weather, but the gesture still mattered. It was one of those moments that immediately increased his already considerable sympathy points. Rather than simply pushing through the set, he acknowledged what had happened, thanked the crowd for waiting and made the whole situation feel shared rather than inconvenient.



Grohl also told the audience that this was the biggest FOO FIGHTERS concert in Germany so far. Coming directly from him, the statement carried weight. Looking around the packed Olympiastadion, it was easy to believe. The venue was massive, the crowd stretched endlessly across the stands and infield, and the atmosphere made the concert feel like a genuine milestone.

‘The Pretender’ followed early and worked exactly as it should in a stadium: tense, explosive and cathartic. ‘Times Like These’ then became one of the first major singalong moments of the evening. After the delay, the song’s message of endurance and uncertainty seemed almost perfectly placed. It felt less like a simple hit and more like a collective release.



The band continued with ‘Rope’ and ‘Stacked Actors’, both showing the musical precision behind the apparent looseness. FOO FIGHTERS shows often feel spontaneous, but they are built on musicians who know exactly what they are doing. Chris Shiflett and Pat Smear created a massive guitar sound without overwhelming the songs, Nate Mendel remained the steady backbone, and Rami Jaffee added depth and colour throughout the evening.

A special mention must go to Ilan Rubin on drums. Taking over this position in the FOO FIGHTERS is no easy task, especially after the loss of Taylor Hawkins. Rubin did not try to imitate anyone. Instead, he played with power, accuracy and a clear sense of his own musical personality. He drove the songs forward with impressive confidence and proved to be a strong presence within the band’s current live incarnation.



‘My Hero’ became one of those moments where the audience almost took over. The song has always carried emotional weight, but in a packed stadium it becomes something larger than itself. ‘Learn to Fly’ brought a lighter mood, while ‘These Days’ and ‘Walk’ once again underlined Grohl’s talent for turning personal struggle into something universally uplifting. ‘This Is a Call’ took the set back to the earliest FOO FIGHTERS era before ‘No Son of Mine’ added a heavier edge, including a short nod to Motörhead’s ‘Ace of Spades’. That little reference fit perfectly. FOO FIGHTERS concerts often feel like love letters to Rock history, and Grohl has never hidden his joy in celebrating the music that shaped him.

The B-stage section offered a welcome change of atmosphere. Suddenly the enormous show became more intimate. ‘Wheels’ worked beautifully in its acoustic version, while ‘Marigold’ reached deep into Grohl’s musical past. ‘Window’, ‘Big Me’ and ‘Under You’ continued this quieter chapter, with ‘Under You’ performed by Dave solo electric. In a stadium of this size, such reduced moments can easily get lost. Here, they created one of the emotional centres of the show.



After that, the band increased the pressure again. ‘La Dee Da’ and ‘Run’ brought back the heavier energy, before the band introductions turned into a playful medley including ‘Invincible’, ‘Seven’, ‘One Headlight’, ‘Manimal’ and ‘Tap Dancing in a Minefield’. These moments are part of what makes FOO FIGHTERS shows so enjoyable. Even in a massive stadium, the band still allows itself to have fun.

The final stretch was pure stadium Rock at its best. ‘Monkey Wrench’ and ‘Breakout’ carried all the urgency of the band’s earlier years, while ‘The Sky Is a Neighborhood’ expanded the sound into something broader and more dramatic. ‘Aurora’ became one of the evening’s most beautiful moments, especially for long-time fans who know how much emotional history that song carries. ‘Best of You’ was enormous. There is no other way to put it. The entire Olympiastadion seemed to sing the chorus back at the band, creating one of those moments where volume and emotion become almost indistinguishable.



Then came ‘The Teacher’, one of the most ambitious and emotionally heavy pieces in the band’s newer catalogue. Placing it so close to the end of a stadium set is a bold choice, but it worked. After so many instantly recognisable anthems, the song demanded attention and gave the final part of the show a sense of depth. Of course, there could only be one ending. ‘Everlong’ closed the musical part of the evening, and it remains one of the greatest Rock songs of the past decades. The reaction was immediate and overwhelming. For a few minutes, the entire stadium seemed united in one song, one voice, one final release.

But the FOO FIGHTERS did not stop with music alone. As the last notes faded into the Berlin night, fireworks erupted from the roof of the Olympiastadion. It was not just a small visual addition, but a huge, spectacular finale that lit up the sky above the stadium. After the thunderstorm delay, the evacuation of the infield, the waiting, the return to the pitch and nearly three hours of music, the concert ended not only with sound but with fire and light. It was a finale for both ears and eyes. Mega, in the truest sense of the word.

Setlist
01. All My Life
02. The Pretender
03. Times Like These
04. Rope
05. Stacked Actors
06. My Hero
07. Learn to Fly
08. These Days
09. Walk
10. This Is a Call
11. No Son of Mine (with Motörhead’s ‘Ace of Spades’ snippet)
---B-Stage---
12. Wheels (Acoustic)
13. Marigold (Late! cover)
14. Window
15. Big Me
16. Under You (Dave solo electric)
---
17. La Dee Da
18. Run
19. Invincible / Seven / One Headlight / Manimal / Tap Dancing in a Minefield (band introductions)
20. Monkey Wrench
21. Breakout
22. The Sky Is a Neighborhood
23. Aurora
24. Best of You
25. The Teacher
26. Everlong

Pictures by Dagmar Urlbauer