In 2025 the European video‑game industry recorded a total turnover of €30 billion, with digital sales representing a dominant 91 percent of that figure, according to the latest data released by Video Games Europe (VGE). This milestone underscores the continuing shift toward online and downloadable content across the continent’s gaming ecosystem. A notable development this year was the broadening of VGE’s flagship market analysis, the All About Games report.
Previously confined to the five largest European territories—namely the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain and Italy—the study now incorporates data from an additional eleven countries: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Sweden and Switzerland. By extending the geographic scope to sixteen markets, VGE aims to present a more comprehensive picture of the region’s gaming activity and economic impact. To compile the expanded dataset, VGE engaged the market‑research firm Ipsos, which pulled figures from several reputable sources, including GameTrack, the German Software Distribution (GSD) database, and the newly published EGDF‑VGE Video Games Industry Insight Report. The survey underlying the report captured responses from 39,371 participants, offering a robust statistical foundation for the findings.
When the numbers for the original five‑country bloc (often referred to as the EU5) are examined in isolation, revenue actually slipped by 4 percent compared with the previous year, falling to €25.7 billion from €26.8 billion in 2024. Germany remained the top‑earning market within the EU5, generating €6.5 billion in sales, followed by France, the United Kingdom, Italy and Spain. Employment figures also paint an encouraging portrait of the sector’s health. In 2025, a total of 123,000 individuals were employed across roughly 8,700 development studios operating in the EU and the United Kingdom.
Women accounted for 24 percent of the workforce, reflecting a gradual but steady improvement in gender diversity within the industry. The United Kingdom emerged as the largest employer, with 28,520 staff members, while Poland and Germany ranked second and third with 14,930 and 12,410 employees respectively. These numbers highlight the importance of both Western and Central European hubs in sustaining the continent’s gaming talent pipeline. Platform preferences among European gamers continued to evolve.
Mobile phones and tablets dominated usage, with 82 percent of respondents indicating they primarily played on these devices. Console gaming held a respectable 47 percent share, and PC remained relevant for 34 percent of players.
Notably, mobile and tablet platforms were responsible for almost half of the total industry revenue, reinforcing the lucrative nature of the handheld market. In the console arena, Electronic Arts (EA) secured the top spot in 2025. EA’s flagship sports titles, EA Sports FC26 and FC25, occupied the first two positions on the console charts, while the long‑awaited Battlefield 6 claimed the third slot.
On the PC side, Battlefield 6 also led the rankings, trailed by Rockstar Games’ enduring classics Red Dead Redemption 2 and Grand Theft Auto 5, which continue to generate substantial sales years after their initial releases. Mobile gaming saw a different set of leaders.
The casual‑strategy game Coin Master topped the list, followed closely by Royal Match and the ever‑popular Candy Crush Saga. These titles illustrate the strong appetite for free‑to‑play experiences that blend quick sessions with in‑app purchase monetisation. Player demographics revealed that 199 million Europeans engaged in gaming during 2025.
Women represented a sizable 46 percent of the player base, amounting to 91.5 million female gamers. The United Kingdom again stood out as the single largest market, boasting 25 million active players. Average weekly playtime across the region measured 8.39 hours, a slight decline from the 9.4 hours recorded in 2024.
When broken down by age, children aged 6‑11 logged an average of 11.35 hours per week, while teenagers aged 12‑17 averaged 14.30 hours, indicating that younger cohorts still spend more time gaming than adults. Parental involvement in gaming habits remained high. Seventy‑five percent of European parents expressed a desire to participate in setting limits on their children’s video‑game usage. Moreover, 79 percent reported using at least one family‑settings tool—such as time‑limits, content filters or purchase restrictions—to monitor or curb gameplay.
Seventy‑four percent said they have explicit agreements, monitoring practices, or family‑setting configurations in place to manage online interactions and safety. Within the EU5 markets, 72 percent of parents indicated that their children did not make in‑game purchases. Among the minority who did, a striking 93 percent of parents reported that they actively supervised those transactions. Interestingly, the average amount spent by children who were permitted to buy in‑game content dropped by 13 percent compared with 2024, suggesting either tighter parental control or a shift in spending patterns among younger players.
Overall, the 2025 data paint a picture of a robust, diversifying European gaming industry. While revenue growth slowed in the traditional EU5 core, the expansion into additional markets and the continued rise of mobile gaming help offset the slowdown. Employment remains strong, gender representation is gradually improving, and parental engagement with gaming habits is higher than ever, all of which point to a healthy ecosystem poised for further evolution in the years ahead.