A HAT-TRICK of major music events will be staged in the North-East next summer with confirmation of a third spectacular stadium show.

Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band will be at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light for one night only, on Thursday, June 21.

It is one of only three headline performances in the UK by the veteran US rocker and his six-piece backing band.

The concert comes between appearances at Manchester’s Etihad Stadium and London’s Hyde Park, as part of the Hard Rock Calling event.

The dates will be the first in the UK since Springsteen and the band headlined Hard Rock Calling in 2009 to huge acclaim from both critics and fans alike.

One of the world’s most successful recording artists, Springsteen has sold more than 120 million albums worldwide and earned numerous accolades for his work, including 20 Grammy Awards, two Golden Globes and an Academy Award.

The show will be sandwiched between previously announced performances by Red Hot Chili Peppers and Coldplay at the stadium during next June.

Sunderland AFC chief executive, Margaret Byrne, said: "The announcement of the Bruce Springsteen concert is the icing on the cake of a fantastic summer of live shows at the Stadium of Light.

"We’re hugely proud to be welcoming one of the world’s biggest music acts to Sunderland."

It will be the first time that the football club will have worked with the show’s promoter Live Nation, considered among the world’s leading live entertainment organisations.

Live Nation’s vice-president of promotions, Toby Leighton-Pope, said: "It’s great to welcome Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band back to the UK, they always put on a fantastic show."

Tickets go on sale on Saturday, December 3, at 9.30am. priced from £55, subject to booking fee, and £60 for the London show.

A limited number of tickets for the Sunderland show will be on sale from the Stadium of Light box office, for in-person purchasers only and will be available on Saturday, December 3 December, at 9am.

They can also be bought online, via www.livenation.co.uk, while hospitality packages can be booked via 0871-911-1555 or email bspringsteen@safc.com or by ringing 0871-911-1555.

Full details are available at www.safcconcerts.com.