It takes 120 lorries to transport, has a 50-metre tall sound system and cost more than any tour in the history of music. But it appears that U2's 360° extravaganza was worth the investment as it has become the highest grossing tour ever, beating the record set by the Rolling Stones.
The Irish band's first tour in three years, which kicked off in June 2009 at Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium, made it past the $558m (£341m) world record after their concert in São Paulo, Brazil, with 20 more gigs to go. The Stones pulled in $558m (£341m) for their Bigger Bang tour between 2005 and 2007.
By the time the U2 tour ends this July, the band will have played to more than 3 million fans in more than three dozen cities around the world and will have made an estimated $700m.
U2's manager, Paul McGuinness, said he and the band were proud of the tour. "That dollar figure for the gross looks enormous," he said. "Of course I can't tell you what the net is, but I can tell you that the band spend enormous sums on production for their audience. Fans all over the world agree that a ticket to U2 360° is good value for money."
Estimated to have cost more than $100m, 360° was already set to be the band's most expensive tour, with the transportation of the stage alone estimated to cost $750,000 a day whether or not the band played. It was projected to gross $750m by the end of 2010, eclipsing takings from the 2005-06 Vertigo tour, which earned U2 $389m.
The 360° tour kicked off in typically extravagant style, with a dramatic mid-show live link-up to the International Space Station – but it hit the buffers in May 2010 when lead man Bono seriously injured his back while in training for the shows.
The singer underwent emergency surgery to prevent possible paralysis and, in a further blow to the band and its fans, U2 were forced to cancel their appearance at Glastonbury in June 2010, where they were expected to headline as part of the festival's 40th anniversary celebrations.
But there have been few other hitches since U2 resumed the tour in Europe last year. More than 7m tickets have been sold for 110 shows. Each gig, which packs in 63,000, takes $6.4m (£3.9m), according to Billboard Boxscore.
It is an astonishing achievement in a climate that has seen the live music sector shrink since the economic downturn, said Greg Parmley, editor of IQ, the live music magazine.
"The U2 tour has smashed previous records, and especially when you consider the backdrop they are working against, that is a major achievement," he said.
There are some acts, such as U2 and Lady Gaga, that can still attract fans by the millions, despite high ticket prices, he added. "There are a handful of gold ticket acts out there that are more popular than ever, which has to be a good thing for the industry."
Tours throughout the world have stuttered since the economic slowdown, with ticket sales dropping 12% in north America last year, Parmley said, and most bands are only able to dream of success on U2's scale.
"It is getting harder for the mid-range band, and we are seeing a gap developing between the real premier league artists and the mid-table and new bands," he said.
U2's desire to play Glastonbury – a gig that the festival's founder, Michael Eavis, has been trying to arrange for 27 years – will finally be realised this June, when they headline the Pyramid stage on Friday 24 June at Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset.
The band's mammoth tour will finish soon after – on 30 July at the Magnetic Hill music festival in Moncton, Canada, where they will be supported by Arcade Fire.
Top 10 highest-grossing tours
U2 360° (expected) 2009-11 $700m
The Rolling Stones A Bigger Bang 2005-07 $558.2m
AC/DC Black Ice World 2008-10 $441.1m
Madonna Sticky & Sweet 2008-09 $408m
U2 Vertigo 2005–06 $389m
The Police The Police reunion 2007-08 $358.8m
The Rolling Stones Bridges To Babylon/No Security 1997-99 $336.01m
The Rolling Stones Voodoo Lounge 1994-95 $316.3m
The Rolling Stones Licks 2002-03 $299.5m
Celine Dion Taking Chances 2008-09 $279.2m