Reload Festival Co-Founder joins Wacken Open Air Management

Wacken Open Air (WOA) has expanded its leadership team with the addition of Andre Jürgens as the third managing director alongside founders Thomas Jensen and Holger Hübner. Jürgens, 46, co-founded the Reload Festival in Lower Saxony two decades ago and will continue as its managing director, though with reduced involvement. Jürgens sees the move as an exciting new challenge, stepping into a leadership role at one of the world’s largest metal festivals. WOA, which sold 85,000 tickets for its 2025 edition, has undergone significant changes in ownership, with British promoter Superstruct Entertainment acquiring a majority stake in 2019, later bought by U.S. investor KKR. 30.1% of the shares remains in the hands of the founders. Wacken Open Air 2025 is set for July 30–August 2, though ticket sales took 57 days to sell out this year—slower than the previous two years when they sold out within hours.