TAYLOR Swift will carry on making and breaking records this summer.
The Cruel Summer star, 34, is taking a deep breath before jumping head-first into a jam-packed European leg of her blockbuster Eras tour.
Taylor will play 51 shows in 13 countries over the next five months as she looks to smash the astonishing numbers racked up in 2023 when she became the first artist to gross over $1 billion from a tour.
The reported $1.04 billion eclipsed previous record holder Elton John, who made $939 million from his Farewell Yellow Brick Road shows in 2022/23.
The legendary English crooner played an astonishing 328 gigs - that is more than five times the number of performances Taylor rolled out last year.
She has extended this year's tour from 60 to 152 - yet it's the Swifties' voracious appetite for merchandise which sets the 34-year-old sensation apart.
The U.S. Sun has spoken to two well-placed insiders - one who specializes in music industry merchandising strategy and another involved specifically on the European leg of the Eras tour.
Both have been left floored by the projected increase in last year's $250 million in sales of t-shirts, posters, and other merch.
The sources claim that during the Asian swing earlier this year, more than 100,000 items were sold online in a day, not even counting the sales inside the packed-out arenas and stadiums.
"We have never seen this before," said one of the specialists.
"I worked with Michael Jackson but nothing came close to what Taylor is doing."
Ticket sales alone are expected to gross over $2 billion - smashing the record from 12 months ago.
And since the start of the year, an estimated $80 million has been brought in with a mass of Swift memorabilia flying off the shelves.
"No other artist can even dream about making even $20 million in merchandising sales on tour," added the business strategy veteran.
"Millions of fans have been waiting for this to happen, and they have been saving money to spend it on their favorite artist.
"The tour is the biggest ever, and Taylor is the most famous artist in the world, and they want to have their part of history."
Taylor is predicted to bring in another $120 million in Europe where she will play sold-out shows in France, Portugal, England, Scotland, Ireland, Sweden, Austria, Germany, Spain, Wales, Switzerland, Italy, and the Netherlands.
"We expect the numbers to be insanely high," confirmed the expert.
Taylor Swift sold over 4.3 million Eras Tour tickets which averaged in price at $239.95. That means she brought in $17 million per show.
The Eras tour in 2023 grossed a record $1.04 billion from just 60 shows.
The former record holder - the legendary Elton John - made around $900 million from over 300 performances.
Ed Sheeran’s Divide Tour raked in $776 million from 257 shows, while iconic rockers U2 played 110 shows on their 360 Tour and saw $735 million roll in.
Swift broke attendance records at several stadiums, including New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, which saw a three-day attendance total of 217,635, and she set single-day records in Pittsburgh and Nashville.
There is also an expectation of swathes of American-based fans making the pilgrimage to Europe for a show.
When the tour returns to North America later this year, the merchandise sales total alone is expected to exceed $500 million.
"Selling more than half a billion dollars of merchandising is absolutely unbelievable," said the insider.
"Taylor Swift will make history once again."
