On Saturday, the crowd was dotted with die-hard fans decked out in head-to-foot Black Sabbath regalia. But most concertgoers wore their fandom more lightly: One man in a Black Sabbath shirt who declined to give his name said that he worked in financial services in London and read an issue of The Economist in the moments before the lights went down. By the time Mr. Osbourne hit the climax of “Black Sabbath,” the magazine was tucked away and the man was on his feet with his hands raised in the shape of devil’s horns, singing gleefully along to the lyrics: “Satan’s sitting there, he’s smiling/Watches those flames get higher and higher.”

The band has always identified as rough and tumble, alternative, working class and distinctly Birminghamian, so the hometown concert had special resonance for some in the audience on Saturday. “Black Sabbath are part of the cultural identity of being in Birmingham,” said Pamela Pinski, 31, who lives and works in the area. Coming to the concert, she added, felt “kind of patriotic to the city,” and like a chance to celebrate “local boys that done good.”

In interviews, the band members have insisted that “The End” — which began in Omaha just over a year ago and made stops in Europe, South America and Australia before coming to Britain last month — really is their last run. Mr. Iommi, who learned he had cancer several years ago, told Rolling Stone that his “body won’t take it much more.” And Mr. Osbourne said in a recent interview with the BBC, “This is definitely it.”