Dear Readers,

as is customary, the opening of the Berlinale is the moment when MEDIA Salles releases data on cinema attendance in Europe. On the eve of this much-anticipated event, we are publishing a preview of trends for 2025, a year marked by light and shadow.

It takes the form of a map that, at a single glance, allows a comparison - across 26 countries - between admissions figures for 2025 and those of 2019, the last year before the pandemic, which profoundly reshaped cinema-going habits.

Across the vast territory shown on the map, an average of 29 spectators out of 100 are missing, but differences between markets are striking, ranging from nearly 17 in Poland to more than 53 in Turkey. Overall, 2025 has widened the gap compared to 2019.

The only bright spot is Georgia, which has already reached - or even surpassed - pre-pandemic results.

With the hope that other countries - not only in Europe but worldwide - will also overcome this difficult challenge and succeed in bringing large audiences back to the big screen, we look forward to having you among our readers tomorrow, the day when 2025 cinema admissions data in Europe will be published, country by country.

Elisabetta Brunella
Secretary General of MEDIA Salles