Madonna expressed her gratitude to her fans following the ‘overwhelming’ demand for tickets ahead of her 40th-anniversary tour.

The Vogue legend, 64, announced a world tour this week to celebrate the 40th anniversary of her debut album and the incredible career she’s had since.

The megastar revealed the news in a video featuring A-list stars including Jack Black and Amy Schumer, in which the group played a NSFW game of truth or dare.

Madonna took to Instagram on Sunday and thanked her loyal supporters for the love.

‘I just want to say thank you to all of my fans for all of your love and support over the last few days,’ she began.

‘I don’t take any of this for granted, I feel like the luckiest girl in the world and I’m so grateful for all of your support.’

Teasing what devoted fans can expect from her spectacular show, she continued: ‘I can’t wait to put the show together and have a moment with each and every one of you on the stage to celebrate the last four decades of my journey, and I don’t take any of this for granted.’

Madonna’s Celebration tour will be kicking off on July 15 in Vancouver, before ticking off 25 US states and eventually coming to Europe with the Queen of Pop’s first stop being London’s O2 Arena on October 14 and 15.

Madonna has been a pop icon for decades  (Picture: Getty Images)

Tickets for the massively anticipated shows went on sale on Friday morning at 10am, and as expected, tickets sold out like lightning, even as the Like A Prayer chart-topper added a third date in the O2.

According to The Liverpool Echo in the first few minutes of the 9am presale opening, prices were seen to start at £47.55 for standard seated tickets, and rose up to £1,306.75 for chosen VIP packages with hardly any options under £400 after not too long.

Fans had been speculating Madonna was set to make a big 40th anniversary announcement as she wiped her Instagram page of all posts.

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It comes after reports the Like A Prayer hitmaker could be ‘going back to basics’ by highlighting her best-selling songs on tour as a way to introduce her back catalogue to a new generation of fans.

‘Madonna is trying something completely new – and really giving fans, young and old, what they want,’ a source told The Sun.

‘She wants to capitalise on tracks like Frozen and Material Girl popping off on TikTok, and introduce her back catalogue to an entirely new generation.

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‘I can’t wait to put the show together and have a moment with each and every one of you.’