Geopolitical uncertainty around the Trump administration dominated the conversation at IMEX Frankfurt 2025, a key focus in educational curriculum and informal discussions on the exhibition grounds.
Despite its background, the event held a strong performance Thursday: 13,000 attendees and more than 4,000 buyers attended 67,000 scheduled meetings in three days – CEO Carina Bauer said that figure represents a matching pre-popular level. The exhibition is the largest ever in terms of exhibitors’ space, the organizers said.
Nevertheless, instability is affecting the meeting. Cvent’s latest global procurement data shows that European nights have lost about 5% to date.
An education conference focused on the first 100 days of the Trump administration and removed some misunderstandings about welcoming business travelers to the United States, including Kevin Hinton, managing director of travel at the American Travel Association Group, and Elliott Ferguson, president and CEO of Destination DC, recently served as president and CEO of Brand USA.
A joint study by The Hague with Partners Council and the Association of Executives of the European Associations shows that the overwhelming concern of associations and nonprofit executives, with 28% saying they have shifted their activity to more politically stable areas, although it does define or ask respondents what they think it is.
An industry that relies on political support
The programming of the IMEX Policy Forum, which connects government officials to industry leaders, mostly avoids this problem. But many talked about the need for industry leaders to stay connected with policy makers, as indicated in IMEX Frankfurt’s announcement for multiple destinations in 2025.
Howard Dawber, London’s deputy mayor of Business and Growth, participated in the forum and joined the London Council at which the exhibition outlined the city’s 10-year experience economic growth plan and highlighted the 10 major international conferences planned for 2026, which are expected to generate US$337 million (£250 million) (£250 million).
A delegation of national policy makers from Maharashtra, India, also participated in the forum. On Wednesday, they formally launched the Maharashtra Congress Bureau with a focus on promoting the capabilities of the one million square foot Jio World Convention Center built in 2022
Irish Minister of Business, Tourism and Employment Peter Burke attended the forum three years ago and also launched the country’s 2030 business activities on site, with the strategy targeting 8% of the annual revenue of the strategy, which is worth US$1.13 billion (1 billion euros) in the industry by 2030.
Luxembourg Minister Travel Eric Thill also attended the meeting, announcing Bettina Bunge as the new CEO of the Luxembourg Conference Board, while launching a new brand identity.
ICCA ranking reveals changing competitive landscape
For many destinations, ICCA rankings remain a key way to show the success of marketing campaigns to policy makers or anyone else making budget decisions. This year, Vienna returned to the city rankings, with Lisbon ranked second.
The United States leads the country’s rankings, while Italy maintains second place. ICCA expanded its analysis to include alternative city rankings, with Dubai estimated to reach a direct economic return of $360 million in average event participants and Barcelona generated with the most direct revenue.
Partnerships enhance industry cohesion
Two agencies representing global industries, one based on the United States and one EU, have announced a refreshing partnership. The Activities Industry Council (EIC) and the Joint Conference Industry Council (JMIC) agreed to coordinate efforts in sustainability, advocacy and research. The collaboration provides a welcome respite for a polarized political climate, if long overdue.
New research highlights industry challenges
With diversity and sustainability at the forefront, IMEX Frankfurt 2025 announced the announcement of insights about destinations and associations.
The Global Destination Sustainable Development Movement and European Travel Commission has released the “New EU Sustainable Development Regulatory Guidelines” which provide practical guidance for sustainability reporting requirements and environmental claims compliance.
Amid the political pressure in the United States, Canadian destinations have released two years of findings on their traditions and impact studies, focusing on identifying key legacy drivers of business events, success factors and outcome categories for pre-successful success, and outcome categories to measure impact.
Finally, a new study on funding for activities reveals a significant disconnect between established goals and selection criteria. Analysis of 115 destination bids for funding support programs for Conferli, #Meet4Impact and the Global Destination Sustainability Movement shows that 91% of destinations claim to prioritize positive impacts, but only 6% of destinations include environmental or social impact standards in funding decisions.
