Sex Pistols back on the road with 2026 German and North American tour

Sex Pistols are taking their 50 years of punk back on the road. According to German live reports and international tour announcements, the band will play three exclusive shows in Germany in July 2026 before a rescheduled North American leg starts in September with Frank Carter handling vocals.

German 2026 dates bring punk history back to local stages

The German anchor of the tour is a compact run under the banner Anarchy in Germany. A German concert announcement lists Sex Pistols feat. Frank Carter at the Save The Core Festival in Nuremberg on July 4, 2026, at the Südbrücke open-air site in Cologne on July 5, 2026, and at the Tollwood Sommerfestival in Munich on July 6, 2026, all presented with Paul Cook, Steve Jones and Glen Matlock on stage alongside Carter.German tour announcement for Anarchy in Germany 2026

A German ticket magazine focuses especially on the Cologne stop, noting that Sex Pistols and Frank Carter will perform at the Südbrücke on July 5, 2026, with an additional appearance at the Tollwood Sommerfestival music arena in Munich on July 6, 2026.Eventim German ticket feature on Cologne and Munich 2026 In total, German fans get three chances within three days to see the band’s 1977 material performed by original members with a contemporary frontman.

Charts and anniversary context for the German run

The 2026 shows in Germany tie directly into a broader 50-years-of-punk narrative. German media point out that the concerts celebrate half a century since the band’s early club days and the impact of Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols, which still charts in Germany decades after its release. The Official German Charts database shows that Sex Pistols entered the German album charts again in June 2022, peaking at number 51, while a 2012 chart entry peaked at number 77.Official German Charts album history for Sex Pistols

This gives the 2026 German dates a clear local dimension: the band’s catalog continues to move in the German charts while Cook, Jones and Matlock bring their classic material back to Nuremberg, Cologne and Munich. For fans who saw the group’s Berlin Zitadelle show in July 2025, the three 2026 dates expand the chance to hear the album again in full with Frank Carter rather than original singer John Lydon.

Where the band stands and what’s next

Beyond Germany, the reunion with Frank Carter extends across Europe and North America. A detailed 2026 tour listing shows Sex Pistols playing major festivals and outdoor venues in several countries: Isle of Wight Festival in Newport in June, Oversound Music Festival in Bari, Germany’s Save The Core, Cologne’s Südbrücke and Munich’s Tollwood Sommerfestival in July, followed by Halifax’s The Piece Hall, Manchester’s Castlefield Bowl, Ilosaarirock in Finland, Hills of Rock in Bulgaria, Théâtre Jean-Deschamps in Carcassonne, Cardiff Castle and Scarborough Open Air Theatre later in the summer.Rock and Roll Garage 2026 tour dates overview

The North American leg then runs from September 11, 2026 in Dallas at Longhorn Ballroom through to October 18, 2026 at The Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles. A US rock publication lists stops in Austin, Houston, Nashville, Kansas City, Toronto, Montreal, Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, Cleveland, Detroit, Columbus, Minneapolis, Denver, Salt Lake City, Seattle, San Francisco, San Diego and Phoenix, marking the band’s first US run in more than two decades.Ultimate Classic Rock report on rescheduled North American dates

How the work sounds in 2026

On stage in Nuremberg, Cologne and Munich the musical focus is still the band’s sole studio album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols. German previews of the 2026 shows emphasize that Cook, Jones and Matlock will perform the record in full with Carter, highlighting songs like Anarchy in the U.K., God Save the Queen, Pretty Vacant and Holidays in the Sun in a set that lasts well over an hour.

Compared with the original late-1970s shows, the 2026 tour places the same material in much larger spaces: from a Cologne riverside site to festival arenas and North American theatres, venues ranging from several thousand up to more than 10,000 capacity. That shift underlines how a single 1977 album has grown from a club-level eruption into a global touring product while retaining its aggressive guitar tone and politically charged lyrics.

This article was created with AI assistance and editorially reviewed. Sources are linked in the text. Dates, chart positions and certifications may change at short notice; correction notes are welcome via the editorial contact on our imprint/contact page.