Ed Sheeran Cancels Gillette Stadium Shows as Nor'easter Hits East Coast

Ed Sheeran has canceled his Sept. 25 and 26 concerts at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., after a nor'easter bearing heavy rain and strong winds forced the cancellation of the high-profile stadium dates.

Tour promoter Messina Touring announced the decision in a statement citing severe weather warnings across Boston and New England throughout the weekend.

"Due to the severe weather warnings in place in Boston and across New England throughout the weekend and following consultation with local officials, we have made the difficult decision to cancel the Ed Sheeran concerts at Gillette Stadium," the promoter said. "The decision was made with the safety of fans, staff and everyone involved in the shows as the top priority."

The cancellations cap a difficult month for the pop star, whose tour has been engulfed in controversy centered on the very venue now lost to weather.

Gillette Stadium is owned by billionaire Robert Kraft. Macklemore, who had opened for Sheeran, alleged that Kraft pushed to remove him from the Loop Tour because of his "Free Palestine" messaging during performances.

Kraft responded publicly after Macklemore's accusation. "I'd welcome the opportunity to sit down with Macklemore and discuss the facts," he said in a statement.

"Gillette Stadium has a longstanding commitment to providing a welcoming environment for all guests and ensuring that events held at our venue do not provide a platform for hate speech," Kraft's statement continued. "Based on Macklemore's recent actions, material shared from the stage during Ed Sheeran's shows in New Jersey, and a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery that we believe has been deeply offensive and hurtful to the Jewish community, we determined that his participation in the September 25th and 26th concerts at Gillette Stadium would cross that line."

The reference to New Jersey points to material Macklemore shared from the stage during Sheeran's shows there earlier on the run.

After Macklemore's removal from the tour, Sheeran addressed the fallout directly at his Sept. 19 show, tearfully reading a message from a teleprompter.

"I don't want to disappoint fans, and I've never wanted to be an activist musician, but this has put me in the middle of an important and passionate argument about freedom of speech and the most complex political issue on the planet," Sheeran told the audience. "My concerts have always been a safe space for everyone, and that matters hugely to me. Honoring my commitment to my fans is also completely essential to who I am, and that is why I'm here tonight on my own and continuing my current tour."

The cancellation of the two Foxborough dates removes the contested shows from the schedule entirely, at least for now. Whether Sheeran reschedules the Gillette Stadium appearances — and whether the dispute between Kraft and Macklemore reaches the conversation Kraft has proposed — remains unresolved as the tour continues without its original opener.