Roger Waters tops worldwide ticket sales for 2012

Waters' tour The Wall Live started in September 2010

Former Pink Floyd star Roger Waters' tour has topped worldwide concert ticket sales for the first half of 2012.

The Wall Live, based on the band's hit 1970s album, took $158.1m (£102.3m) beating Bruce Springsteen and Madonna.

Waters sold 1.4 million tickets according to Pollstar magazine, which tracks the live concert business.

Springsteen, whose ticket sales stand at $79.9m (£51.7) currently, could overtake Waters by the end of the year.

"While Waters still has a few Walls left to build on his itinerary, Springsteen also has a long way to go before the end of the Wrecking Ball tour, and still could finish with the year's top outing," wrote the magazine.

Madonna, who - in third place - has topped $42m (£27.2m) in ticket sales worldwide, "also has an outside shot", as her tour has yet to reach the US.

During the first half of 2011, U2 were the top-selling live act worldwide with their 360° tour taking $164m (£106), while Waters was in second place and Bon Jovi in third.

U2 went on to secure the highest earning tour of 2011, taking $293m (£186m) according to figures from Billboard Boxscore.

In the US so far this year ticket sales for the 100 largest concerts are up 1.2% thanks to big stars like Lady Gaga, Madonna and Paul McCartney all touring there.

However Pollstar said "today's economic realities" had seen US concert promoters drop their ticket prices by an average of $6 (£3.80) to their lowest price since 2007, around $60 (£39).

Cirque du Soleil's touring musical stage show Michael Jackson: The Immortal has proved 2012's hottest ticket in North America with $78.5m (£50.8m) sales, compared to Waters in second with $61.9m (£40m).

His tour The Wall Live began in Toronto in September 2010, before moving across North America to Europe, Australia, New Zealand and South America.

Currently on its second North American leg, the classic Pink Floyd concept album had last been performed in Berlin in 1990.

During the London leg of the tour in May 2011, Waters was joined on stage at London's O2 Arena by the band's guitarist David Gilmour and drummer Nick Mason, for a rare performance of Outside the Wall.