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SPIEL '25 in Essen

From October 23 to 26, 2025, SPIEL ’25, the world’s largest public trade fair for board games, took place in Essen.

220,000 visitors from all over the world came to the exhibition halls, where over 900 exhibitors from around 50 nations presented more than 1,700 new games. It’s no wonder that SPIEL was sold out on all four days.

With the addition of the new Hall 7, the exhibition space was expanded once again, bringing the total to approximately 77,500 m². A new stage in Hall 4 offered a diverse program on all four days: expert presentations, panels, and cosplay events.

The Deutsche Spiele Preis, Germany’s largest community award, was presented on Wednesday. First place went to SETI: In Search of Extraterrestrial Life by Tomás Holek (CGE / HeidelBÄR Games). Second place went to Endeavor: Deep Sea by Carl de Visser and Jarratt Gray (Frosted Games / Board Game Circus), and third place to Bomb Busters by Hisashi Hayashi (Pegasus).

A particular highlight this year was the 30th anniversary of Catan. A total of 1,170 people played the Catan variant Catan Connect simultaneously, setting a new world record. The previous record, set in Rotterdam in 2017, was impressively broken, creating a jubilant atmosphere in the exhibition halls.

Our Association at SPIEL ’25

Amidst the vibrant hustle and bustle of the fair, we were also present – ​​sharing a booth in Hall 4 with Boardgame Cruise, where lively discussions took place.

We had numerous interesting conversations with players, authors, publishers, and many familiar faces from the board game community.

We also received many new games for our lending library, including highlights from all genres, from children’s and family games to expert-level titles. We are delighted that our game lending library is already stocked with a large selection of fall releases, which you can try out at upcoming events.

SPIEL ’25 was a resounding success – for our association, for the publishers, and for the entire board game scene. More visitors, more space, more games.

We thank everyone who stopped by our booth and are already looking forward to SPIEL ’27.