BOBfest Mönchengladbach

BOBfest — Niederrhein's Rock Summer in SparkassenPark

The BOBfest is one of the largest one-day rock open-airs in the Niederrhein region. The venue is the SparkassenPark Mönchengladbach, formerly the Hockeypark — an open-air complex that has served as a concert venue for rock, pop, and metal acts for years (Iron Maiden, Aerosmith, Foreigner, and many more have played here). BOBfest 2026 focuses on classic heavy metal, hard rock, and symphonic metal — a format aimed at the rock and metal community in NRW, the Ruhr area, Niederrhein, and the neighbouring Netherlands.

Judas Priest — Headliner and Heavy Metal Pioneers

Judas Priest from Birmingham (founded 1969) are one of the most important bands in heavy metal history. “Painkiller”, “Breaking the Law”, “Living After Midnight”, “Electric Eye” — their catalogue is genre-defining. For decades, Rob Halford, Glenn Tipton, Ian Hill, and the rest of the band have represented British metal in its purest form. The BOBfest concert is part of their current tour.

Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons — Motörmania

BOBfest 2026 has a special touch with Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons: the band announced a complete Motörhead set — Phil Campbell was the guitarist for Motörhead for decades alongside Lemmy Kilmister. After Phil Campbell's death on March 13, 2026, the set becomes a tribute and a final joint performance by the Bastard Sons, led by his sons Todd, Tyla, and Dane Campbell, along with singer Joel Peters.

Beyond The Black, Airbourne, Nestor, The Gems

Beyond The Black from Mannheim are Germany's most important symphonic metal band — orchestral elements, driving guitar riffs, big choruses. Airbourne from Australia stand for unpolished AC/DC-school hard rock — energy, speed, attitude. Nestor from Sweden bring back the glam rock atmosphere of the 80s with a modern sound. The Gems from Sweden are a newer hard rock band with references to classic heavy rock.

SparkassenPark Mönchengladbach and Getting There

The SparkassenPark is located in Mönchengladbach-Wickrath, easily accessible via the A44/A46 with a large car park on site, as well as via public transport (Mönchengladbach main station, then bus). Reachable by bike or on foot from the surrounding neighbourhoods. Festival open-air setup with a large main stage, catering, bars, and merchandise stands.