In 2025 the European video‑game market generated a total of €30 billion in revenue, with digital transactions 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 purchases, downloadable content and in‑app spending across the continent’s diverse gaming ecosystem.
A major development this year was the broadening of VGE’s flagship research publication, the All About Games report. Previously confined to the five largest European markets—often referred to as the EU5 (the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain and Italy)—the analysis now incorporates data from an additional eleven countries: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Sweden and Switzerland.
By widening its geographic scope, VGE aims to present a more comprehensive picture of gaming trends, consumer habits and economic impact throughout Europe. To compile the expanded dataset, VGE commissioned the market‑research firm Ipsos, which pulled information from several established sources, including GameTrack, the Global Software Development (GSD) database and the newly issued EGDF‑VGE Video Games Industry Insight Report.
The resulting survey captured responses from 39,371 participants, providing a robust statistical foundation for the findings. When the numbers for the original EU5 are examined in isolation, a modest contraction becomes evident.
Revenue across those five nations fell by 4 percent year‑on‑year, dropping from €26.8 billion in 2024 to €25.7 billion in 2025. Despite the dip, Germany remained the top‑earning market within the group, delivering €6.5 billion in sales, followed by the United Kingdom, France, 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 by 8,700 game‑development studios spread across the EU and the UK. Women accounted for roughly a quarter (24 percent) of the workforce, indicating gradual progress toward gender diversity in an industry historically dominated by men. The United Kingdom employed the largest number of staff—28,520 workers—while Poland (14,930) and Germany (12,410) ranked second and third respectively. Platform preferences among European gamers continued to evolve.
Mobile phones and tablets emerged as the most popular devices, with 82 percent of respondents reporting regular use for gaming. Console usage was reported by 47 percent of players, and 34 percent indicated they primarily played on personal computers. In monetary terms, mobile and tablet gaming contributed almost half of the total industry revenue, reaffirming the importance of the smartphone ecosystem for developers and publishers. The console segment was led by Electronic Arts, whose titles EA Sports FC26 and FC25 secured the two highest‑ranking spots on the console charts in 2025.
The third‑place position was taken by Battlefield 6, illustrating the enduring appeal of first‑person shooters on home‑console hardware. On the PC front, Battlefield 6 also claimed the top position, followed closely by Rockstar Games’ long‑standing blockbusters Red Dead Redemption 2 and Grand Theft Auto 5. These results demonstrate that high‑budget, narrative‑driven experiences continue to attract sizable audiences on the personal‑computer platform.
Mobile gaming leaders were slightly different. The casual‑puzzle title Coin Master topped the mobile leaderboard, with Royal Match and the evergreen Candy Crush Saga occupying the second and third slots. The success of these titles underscores the potency of freemium models, frequent content updates and social‑sharing features in driving engagement on handheld devices. Overall player penetration remained impressive: 199 million Europeans reported playing video games in 2025.
Women made up 46 percent of that audience, translating to 91.5 million female gamers—a clear sign that gaming is increasingly gender‑balanced. The United Kingdom stood out as the single largest national market, with 25 million active players. When it comes to time spent gaming, the average European logged 8.39 hours per week, a slight decline from the 9.4 hours recorded in 2024. Younger demographics still devoted more time to play: children aged 6‑11 averaged 11.35 hours weekly, while teenagers aged 12‑17 logged an average of 14.30 hours per week.
Parental involvement in gaming habits also featured prominently in the survey. Seventy‑five percent of European parents expressed a desire to take an active role in setting limits on their children’s video‑game usage.
Correspondingly, 79 percent reported using one or more family‑setting tools—such as time‑limits, content filters or purchase restrictions—to monitor or curb gameplay. Moreover, 74 percent indicated that they have explicit agreements with their children, employ monitoring software, or rely on built‑in family settings to manage online interactions and social features.
In the EU5 markets specifically, 72 percent of parents said their children did not make in‑game purchases at all. Among the minority who did buy virtual items, a striking 93 percent of parents claimed they supervised those transactions.
Notably, the average amount spent by children who were permitted to purchase in‑game content fell by 13 percent compared with 2024, suggesting either tighter parental control, more cautious spending habits among younger players, or a shift toward free‑to‑play experiences with less emphasis on microtransactions. Taken together, these data points illustrate a European gaming landscape that is both financially robust and increasingly diversified in terms of platforms, demographics and geographic reach.
The expansion of VGE’s All About Games report to encompass 16 countries provides a richer, more nuanced understanding of how the industry is evolving across the continent, and sets the stage for future analyses that will track growth, consumer behavior and policy implications in the years ahead.