Brazil has introduced a new ‘Taylor Swift Law’ three years after a fan died of extreme heat at one of her ‘Eras Tour’ shows.
READ MORE: Taylor Swift – ‘The Life Of A Showgirl’ review: magical when the songwriter just lets herself be
Ana Clara Benevides, aged 23, fainted during the November 2023 show, which saw temperatures in the area peaking around 38-degrees. She died hours later at a local hospital, and it was later confirmed that she died from heat exhaustion, as heat exposure led to cardiac arrest.
Swift took to social media to say that she was left “devastated” by the news, and later cancelled the following show in the city due to the extreme temperatures.
At the time, it was widely reported that fans hadn’t been allowed to bring water into the Nilton Santos Stadium, and fans came together to push for a change to the rules at the venue.
Now, nearly three years on, Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has signed two decrees, which have been named the “Taylor Swift Law”.
The first decree now makes it a legal requirement for venues and events with over 1,000 visitors to provide free drinking water, and also allow people to bring their own water containers to concerts.
| The Brazilian government introduced the “Taylor Swift Law”, inspired by her Eras Tour stop in the country, against ticket scalpers and assures free water distribution at any upcoming cultural events. pic.twitter.com/voFsycRgse
— Taylor Swift HQ (@TSwiftHQ13) August 31, 2026
The second decree cracks down on scalpers and high ticket prices. It rules that ticketing platforms must outline all additional costs early in the buying process – avoiding hidden fees that tally up just before the payment is required – and also requires that all ticket transfers must be available at no extra cost.
Local outlet O Globo reports that the law was pushed into effect during a signing ceremony in Brasília, and fans of Swift, Lady Gaga, Harry Styles, BTS and more were in attendance, having previously pushed for legal change over the past three years.
Shortly after Benevides’ death, her father spoke to Folha de São Paulo newspaper about the loss, sharing: “I lost my only daughter, a happy and intelligent girl. She was about to graduate in Psychology next April, saving money.
“I have no words to express my pain. She left home to fulfil a dream and came back dead.”
Presidente LULA assinando o decreto CONTRA o cambismo e que garante água GRATUITA em eventos!
É 13 no Spotify e na URNA! @LulaOficial pic.twitter.com/LJzA90k8J5
— Taylor Swift Brasil (@taylorswiftbr) August 31, 2026
The move to tackle scalpers and high ticket prices laid out in Brazil is similar to that introduced in the UK – in which the UK government confirmed plans to enforce a ban on selling secondary tickets for a profit.
The changes make it illegal to re-sell tickets for live music, sports, comedy and theatre events above original cost – making re-sold gig tickets roughly £37 cheaper on average and collectively saving fans £112million per year. Massive fees from secondary ticket sellers will also be stamped out.
“Finally, we’re here,” Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy recently told NME about the announcement. “We promised when we were elected that it would be time up for ticket touts. It’s a good day.”
Explaining the finer details of what it means for gig-goers, she continued: “People will obviously be able to re-sell their tickets, but not for any more than the price they paid for it. They’ll have to sell it at face value.”
As for Swift, the singer dropped her most recent album ‘The Life of a Showgirl‘ last year, which was inspired by her experience on her record-breaking ‘Eras’ tour. It soon became the best-selling album of that year in the UK – making Swift the first artist to have the top seller in consecutive years for different albums since ABBA in 1977.
Since the album’s release, Swift has become the youngest female artist to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame, invited Graham Norton, Lewis Capaldi, and Cillian Murphy for her ‘Opalite’ music video, and filed to trademark her own voice and image after growing concerns about AI.
She also donated $26million (£19.5million) to 20 charities across the United States ahead of her marriage to Travis Kelce earlier this year, and more recently donated $50,000 (£37,000) to a GoFundMe page to help a mother that was hit by a car.
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