Run For Your Lives

2025 - 2026

The Run For Your Lives World Tour was announced on 19 September 2024 as a celebration of the band’s 50th anniversary since their formation in 1975. It was also confirmed that the setlist would focus on the band’s first nine albums, which Bruce Dickinson had promised would be a “setlist for the ages.” However, many fans weren’t completely happy with the song selection, as everyone clearly expected more rare tracks. For some strange reason No Prayer for the Dying was scrapped, with none of its songs included. Meanwhile, overplayed songs like The Trooper, Fear of the Dark, The Number of the Beast, Aces High, and Wasted Years remained in the setlist. We also saw the return of some Di’Anno-era songs, but still, it wasn’t what fans were hoping for.

This is the first tour since 1983’s World Piece Tour not to feature drummer Nicko McBrain, and the first with his touring replacement, Simon Dawson. While many fans accepted the “new” drummer, plenty complained that the songs sounded different — and they were probably right.

There was also a major change to the stage design. The textile backdrops and inflatable props were replaced with huge LED screens. Some fans enjoyed this, but it kind of took away attention from Maiden’s performance. On songs like The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Hallowed Be Thy Name, and Aces High, full movie-like animations played in the background, making it feel more like watching a film than a live concert. The rest of the songs featured slight animations of Eddie. To be fair, the screens weren’t bad — some things were even impressive. For example, Bruce’s theatrical performance during Hallowed Be Thy Name or the massive pyramid view during Powerslave. But if the inflatable props had also been included alongside the screens, the stage would’ve looked on a whole different level. A lot of bands are doing this now, and their stages look massive — just check out recent tours from The HU or In Flames and you’ll get the idea. It’s just a shame to have the greatest mascot in the world reduced to a digital animation on a screen.

The first leg of the Run For Your Lives World Tour began on 27 May 2025 in Budapest, Hungary, and ended on 2 August 2025 in Warsaw, Poland. The tour is currently scheduled to conclude in 2026.