Tengrinews.kz — Kairat Football Club has commented on reports regarding an upcoming concert by American rapper Kanye West (Ye) at Almaty Central Stadium on August 14. The club stated that this date was not coordinated with the team, which plays its home matches at the arena.
Club Statement
In an official statement, statement Kairat announced that information about the concert appeared in the public domain without prior consultation with the club.
"FC Kairat officially informs that the announced event date was not coordinated by the concert organizers with the club, which plays its home matches at the Central Stadium and continues its participation in European club tournaments," the statement reads.
The club noted that the team is scheduled to play several important matches at the Central Stadium in August.
"According to the Kazakhstan Premier League calendar, FC Kairat is scheduled to play home matches of the Kazakhstan Championship at the Central Stadium on August 8 and 15. Furthermore, a potential home match in European competition could take place at the stadium between August 11 and 13," the statement notes.
Reasons for Concern
According to the club, hosting a concert of this magnitude could interfere with the stadium's preparation for official matches.
Kairat noted that the assembly and disassembly of the stage, as well as the installation of technical equipment, require time and place an additional burden on the arena's infrastructure and the pitch.
"Holding a concert of this scale involves the prolonged assembly and disassembly of staging and technical equipment, as well as a significant load on the football pitch and stadium infrastructure. Given the dense sporting calendar, this could affect the quality of the turf, the preparation of the arena, and the ability to hold official matches in accordance with established requirements," the club stated.
In this regard, the club emphasized that any mass events at the Central Stadium should only be held after coordination with all stakeholders and in consideration of the approved football calendar.
"Until the relevant approvals are finalized, the club considers the announcement of the Central Stadium as the venue for the concert on August 14 to be premature," the statement said.
Background on the Concert
Earlier, it was reported that American rapper Kanye West plans to perform in Almaty on August 14, 2026. The information first appeared on one of the artist's fan pages, which also claimed that ticket sales were set to begin on July 20.
Later, information about the concert was confirmed by the Almaty Akimat (City Administration). Additionally, a similar announcement was posted on the page of Joseph Karre, entrepreneur and founder of Karre Ventures and ML1 Records.
However, at the time of publication, the Almaty concert is still missing from the artist's tour schedule published on ETA website.
If the concert takes place, it could be part of Ye's world tour, during which the artist has already performed in Mexico in 2026 and announced a series of major stadium concerts in Europe.
Notably, this is not the first time that holding a major concert at Almaty Central Stadium has raised questions.
In May of last year, after the announcement of a Jennifer Lopez concert as part of the "Up All Night" world tour, FC Kairat also issued an official statement. At that time, the club reported that the concert date—August 10—had not been approved, as a Kazakhstan Championship home match and European competition games were already scheduled for that period.
Later, the concert organizers, the management of FC Kairat, and the Almaty Sports Facilities Directorate were able to find a compromise. The parties agreed to reschedule the Kazakhstan Premier League match between Kairat and Zhenis to September 21, which allowed Jennifer Lopez's original concert date of August 10 to be maintained. At the time, organizers thanked the club and sports organizations for the constructive dialogue, noting that the decision balanced the interests of both football fans and concertgoers.