[1][2] The Who were in the midst of the United States leg of their 1979 world tour, which began in September with a total of seven dates split between the Capitol Theatre in Passaic, New Jersey and Madison Square Garden in New York City.

[4] People were originally told through a radio station that General Admission ticket holders would be admitted at 3:00 p.m. and therefore a sizable crowd formed by 5:00 p.m.

Conflicting reports suggested that concertgoers could hear either a very late soundcheck or the Who's film Quadrophenia (1979), in lieu of an opening act.

[5] Fire officials advised Who manager Bill Curbishley to cancel the concert, but he convinced them to allow the show to continue to avoid further panic.

"[6] The following night, a lengthy segment on the tragedy aired on the CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite examining violence at rock concerts.

At the Who's next concert in Buffalo on December 4, lead vocalist Roger Daltrey told the crowd: "We lost a lot of family last night.

"[7] Years later, Townshend said he regretted leaving Cincinnati and continuing to tour, remarking on the Buffalo concert "We're in the wrong city.

"[6] The eleven people who died in the crush were:[8] In Providence, Rhode Island, Mayor Buddy Cianci cancelled a scheduled performance of the Who at the city's Civic Center that same month.

[14] In 2004, the city of Cincinnati permanently repealed its long-standing ban on unassigned seating, two years after temporarily making an exception for a Bruce Springsteen concert.

[16][17] In 2009, thirty years after the tragedy, rock station WEBN/102.7 aired a retrospective on the event, including clips from news coverage in 1979.

Three scholarships are awarded annually[22] to eligible Finneytown High School seniors who are pursuing higher education in the arts or music at an accredited university or college.

The episode, "The City Whose Name Must Not Be Spoken", showcases the "roadies" of a fictional band completing many rituals after someone on the tour bus mentions Cincinnati.

On the 40th anniversary of the tragedy in December 2019, Cincinnati television station WCPO aired the documentary The Who: The Night That Changed Rock about the incident and its aftermath, which featured interviews from survivors, family members, Daltrey, and Townshend.

[28] The documentary and a separate WCPO news broadcast marked the first time that Daltrey and Townshend had ever conducted interviews solely about the Cincinnati disaster.

"[30] After 43 years, the Who returned to perform in Cincinnati on May 15, 2022, as a part of their North American "The Who Hits Back" tour, with the event moved from Truist Arena to TQL Stadium.

[34] Photographs of the 11 victims of the 1979 disaster appeared on the venue's video screens as Who keyboardist Loren Gold performed an 11-minute instrumental introduction to "Love, Reign o'er Me".