AMERICAN rock giants The Foo Fighters played in the front of 50,000 ecstatic North-East fans last night.

The Stadium of Light in Sunderland was transformed for the show by the Grammy award-winning band, led by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl.

He told the crowd: "The first time we ever headlined a festival, it was here."

The band opened with classic Everlong before playing a string of hits, including Monkey Wrench.

Indie rock band The Kaiser Chiefs and Irish blues rock band The Strypes also played sets.

Nine days ago the ground was used for the Black Cats' finals home game of the season against Leicester and the vast infrastructure to host the gig had to be put in place afterwards.

Crowd barriers, handrails, LED boards and advertising hoardings were removed from around the pitch and an external courtyard area, where fans enjoyed pre-show entertainment, fast food and drinks, was constructed.

More than 2,000 staff were on duty to facilitate the mammoth operation.

Steve Walton, event manager, SJM Concerts, said: "Once again the Stadium of Light has delivered a fantastic music event. The joined up approach between the football club and its city partners makes hosting concerts here a seamless experience.

"Everyone had a great night and the show kicked off the tour in real style."

Sunderland AFC’s commercial director, Gary Hutchinson said: “It was a fantastic show and Foo Fighters certainly lived up to their reputation as one of the best stadium acts in the world. 

"There is a huge amount of work that goes on behind the scenes to get a stadium show up and running and to see it come to fruition in such tremendous style gives everyone a great sense of satisfaction.

“Once again, as a city we have demonstrated that by working together we can deliver major events in spectacular fashion and my thanks go to all the partners, organisations and individuals involved in the planning, preparation and successful delivery of the event.”