Ed Sheeran has announced details of a huge world tour.

Ed Sheeran

Ed Sheeran

The 'Castle on the Hill' hitmaker will go out on the road in Italy on March 17 and play 42 concerts throughout the UK & Ireland, Europe,Central and South America, ending in Mexico on June 14.

The tour includes two nights at London's The O2 on May 1 and 2, his first shows in the city since his record-breaking gigs at Wembley Stadium in July 2015.

The UK, Irish and European shows will go on sale from 10am on 2 February, while fans in Mexico, Central and South America are advised to contact local ticketing companies for on sale dates.

While no support act has yet been announced for the tour, it was recently claimed the 25-year-old singer wants his close friend James Blunt to join him for some of the dates.

A source said: "Ed and James have a real laugh together, it'll be proper madness on tour. James has a good following in the US so he'll also play some gigs too, acting as a support for his mate. When you spend so much time on the road it's always handy to be in good company, and James certainly fits into that category."

And the 'Shape of You' singer previously admitted he didn't want to play stadiums this year.

He said: "This time, I didn't want to go straight into stadiums. I wanted to get the tour good first. We're doing smaller shows ... It's mad to say an arena is a small show cause it's not, but it was a conscious decision not to book a load of Wembleys this year."

Ed Sheeran's 2017 tour dates:

March:

17 - Pala Aplitour, Turin, Italy

19 - Hallenstadion, Zurich, Switzerland,

20 - Olympiahalle, Munich, Germany

22 - SAP-Arena, Mannheim, Germany

23 - Lanxess Arena, Cologne, Germany

26 - Barclaycard Arena, Hamburg, Germany

27 - Mercedes Benz Arena, Berlin, Germany

30 - Ericsson Globen, Stockholm, Sweden

April

1 - Jyske Bank Boxen, Herning, Denmark

3 - Ziggo Dome, Amsterdam, Netherlands

4 - Ziggo Dome, Amsterdam, Netherlands

5 - Sportpaleis, Antwerp, Belgium

6 - Accor Hotels Arena, Paris, France

8 - WiZink Center, Madrid, Spain

9 - Palau San Jordi, Barcelona, Spain

12 - 3 Arena, Dublin, Ireland

13 - 3 Arena, Dublin, Ireland

16 - SSE Hydro, Glasgow, Scotland

17 - SSE Hydro, Glasgow, Scotland

19 - Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle, England

20 - Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle, England

22 - Arena, Manchester, England

23 - Arena, Manchester, England

25 - Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham, England

26 - Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham, England

28 - Barclaycard Arena, Birmingham, England

29 - Barclaycard Arena, Birmingham, England

May:

1 - The O2, London, England

2 - The O2, London, England

13 - Estadio Nacional, Lima, Peru

15 - Movistar Arena, Santiago, Chile

20 - Estadio Unico De La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina

23 - Pedreira Paulo Leminsky, Curitiba, Brazil

25 - Rio Arena, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

28 - Allianz Parque, Sao Paulo, Brazil

30 - Esplanada Do Mineirao, Belo Horizonte, Brazil

June:

2 - Parque Simon Bolivar, Bogota, Colombia

4 - Coliseo De Puerto Rico , San Juan, Puerto Rico

6 - Parque Viva Amphitheater, San Jose, Costa Rica

10 - Palacio De Los Deportes, Mexico City, Mexico

12 - Arena VFG, Guadalajara, Mexico

14 - Auditorio Citibanamex, Monterrey, Mexico