It’s taking place subsequent week
Author: Scott ColothanPublished sixteenth Feb 2026
Last up to date sixteenth Feb 2026
Download Festival 2026 has introduced when it is going to be making its second line-up announcement.
To mark Valentine’s Day, Download Festival despatched out a mailshot to subscribers of the Download Family publication on Saturday that includes a picture of a coronary heart emblazoned with the phrases ‘Save the Day. 23.02.26’ and the enduring Download Dog brand.
Although no different particulars have been supplied, it’s extraordinarily probably that Download will probably be asserting extra bands on Monday twenty third February.
Last 12 months’s second wave was announced on 18th February 2025.
Headlined by Limp Bizkit (Friday), Guns N’ Roses (Saturday) and Linkin Park (Sunday), more than 90 bands have already been confirmed for the 23rd Download Festival.
These embrace Halestorm, Those Damn Crows, Mastodon, Rage Against the Machine legend Tom Morello, Bad Omens, Cypress Hill, Trivium, Architects, Electric Callboy, Bush, Feeder, The Pretty Reckless, Tailgunner, Wolfgang Van Halen’s band Mammoth and Keanu Reeves’ band Dogstar.
Also on the invoice are Pendulum, The All-American Rejects, BABYMETAL, Ice Nine Kills, Tom Morello, Black Veil Brides, Drowning Pool, Periphery, letlive., Static-X, Spineshank, RØRY, Dinosaur Pile-Up, Magnolia Park, TX2, AS IT IS, Story Of The Year, Ash, Sleep Theory, Melrose Avenue, P.O.D, Hollywood Undead, Scene Queen, We Came As Romans, Mammoth, Kublai Khan TX, Bloodywood and masses extra.
Scooter, Germany’s most successful techno act, were confirmed as the curveball act in November.
The 20 best Monsters of Rock and Download Festival headliners:
20 – ZZ Top
ZZ Top headlined Monsters of Rock in 1985
19 – System of a Down
System of a Down headlined Download Festival in 2005, 2011 and 2017
18 – Def Leppard
Def Leppard headlined Download Festival in 2009, 2011 and 2019
17 – Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne headlined Monsters of Rock in 1986 and co-headlined with KISS in 1996
He additionally topped the invoice at Download Festival in 2018
16 – The Prodigy
The Prodigy headlined Download Festival in 2012
15 – Muse
Muse headlined Download Festival in 2015
14 – Status Quo
Status Quo headlined Monsters of Rock in 1982
13 – Bon Jovi
Bon Jovi headlined Monsters of Rock in 1987
12 – Guns N’ Roses
Guns N’ Roses headlined Download Festival in 2006 and 2018
11 – Linkin Park
Linkin Park headlined Download Festival in 2004, 2007, 2011 and 2014
10 – KISS
KISS co-headlined Monsters of Rock with Ozzy Osbourne in 1996
They went on to headline Download Festival in 2008, 2015 and 2022
9 – Rainbow
Rainbow headlined Monsters of Rock in 1980
8 – Aerosmith
Aerosmith headlined Monsters of Rock in 1994
7 – Whitesnake
Whitesnake headlined Monsters of Rock in 1983 and 1990
6 – Slipknot
Slipknot headlined Download Festival in 2009, 2013, 2015, 2019 and 2023
5 – Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath headlined Download Festival in 2005, 2012 and 2016
4 – Rammstein
Rammstein headlined Download Festival in 2013 and 2016
3 – Metallica
Metallica headlined Monsters of Rock in 1995
They additionally headlined Download Festival in 2004, 2006, 2012 and 2023 (twice)
2 – AC/DC
AC/DC headlined Monsters of Rock in 1981, 1984, 1991
They headlined Download Festival in 2010
1 – Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden headlined Monsters of Rock in 1988, 1992
They additionally headlined Download Festival in 2003, 2007, 2013, 2016, 2022
