Live Nation's Hans Schafer named Billboard Latin Power Players Executive of the Year
Billboard has named Hans Schafer, senior vice-president of global touring at Live Nation, as its Latin Power Players Executive of the Year. The profile was published on 9 October 2026 in an issue with Pitbull as cover star Billboard Billboard.
Schafer was born in Miami to Venezuelan parents. He joined Live Nation in late 2017 as senior vice-president of global touring, working on concert runs across the United States, Latin America and beyond.
His early test came with Los Bukis. The Mexican group reunited in 2021 after 30 years apart, and Schafer and his team put them into two concerts at SoFi Stadium in the Los Angeles area in August 2021.
The numbers moved fast. The two SoFi shows grossed $13.8 million in ticket sales, according to Billboard Boxscore, the chart that logs concert takings Billboard.
Live Nation then used that stadium playbook for other acts. Following the reunion, Schafer and his team plotted stadium tours for Bad Bunny, Karol G, Fuerza Regida and Shakira.
The wider market shifted with them. Latin tours made up 6.8% of total takings on Billboard Boxscore's year-end Top 100 Tours chart in 2015, and 5.3% in 2019. By 2024, that share had reached 15.8%.
Schafer is set to discuss that live business in person. He was scheduled to sit down for a panel with the Venezuelan band Rawayana during Billboard Latin Music Week, where he is listed as an additional executive featured guest in the 2026 final line-up Billboard.
What makes this stand out for concert-goers is scale. A decade ago, a Latin act playing a full stadium run in the US was the exception. The recent grosses and tour plans point to a circuit where Spanish-language headliners regularly book the same large rooms and stadiums as English-language pop acts.
