In 2025 the European video‑game sector amassed a total turnover of €30 billion, with digital sales representing an overwhelming 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, subscription services and downloadable content across the continent’s diverse gaming ecosystem.
A notable development this year is the expansion of VGE’s flagship market analysis, the All About Games report. Previously limited to the five largest European territories – 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 broadening its geographic coverage to sixteen markets, VGE aims to provide a more comprehensive picture of consumer behaviour, revenue trends and employment statistics throughout the European Union and the UK.
To compile the new dataset, VGE commissioned the research firm Ipsos, which aggregated information from several industry‑specific sources, including GameTrack, the Game Software Developers (GSD) association, and the recently published EGDF‑VGE Video Games Industry Insight Report. The resulting survey captured responses from 39,371 participants, offering a robust sample size that reflects a wide cross‑section of gamers, parents and industry professionals. When the numbers are broken down, the original five‑market bloc (often referred to as the EU5) saw a modest contraction of 4 percent year‑on‑year, slipping from €26.8 billion in 2024 to €25.7 billion in 2025.
Germany remained the region’s top‑earning country, generating €6.5 billion in revenue, followed by the United Kingdom, France, Spain and Italy in descending order. Despite the dip, the overall European market grew to €30 billion thanks largely to the added contributions from the newly surveyed nations. Employment figures paint an equally encouraging picture. In 2025, roughly 123,000 individuals were employed across 8,700 development studios operating in the EU and the UK.
Women accounted for 24 percent of this workforce, indicating gradual progress toward gender parity in a historically male‑dominated field. The United Kingdom employed the highest number of gaming professionals, with 28,520 staff members, while Poland and Germany followed with 14,930 and 12,410 employees respectively. Platform usage continues to be dominated by mobile devices. Smartphones and tablets were the preferred hardware for 82 percent of gamers, making them the most popular entry point for playing and for generating revenue – they alone contributed close to half of the total €30 billion turnover.
Console gaming held a solid secondary position with a 47 percent usage rate, and traditional PC gaming accounted for 34 percent of the audience. When it comes to top‑grossing titles, the console segment was led by Electronic Arts. EA’s flagship sports franchise, EA Sports FC26, claimed the number‑one spot, with its predecessor FC25 holding the runner‑up position, and the long‑running Battlefield 6 series rounding out the top three.
On the PC side, Battlefield 6 also topped the charts, followed by Rockstar Games’ enduring classics Red Dead Redemption 2 and Grand Theft Auto V, both of which continue to attract substantial player bases and micro‑transaction revenue. Mobile gaming saw a different set of leaders.
The casual‑strategy title Coin Master secured the top position, while Royal Match and the evergreen puzzle phenomenon Candy Crush Saga occupied the second and third places respectively. These results illustrate the continued dominance of free‑to‑play models that rely on in‑app purchases and ad‑supported monetisation. Overall player penetration remained high, with 199 million Europeans reporting that they played video games at least occasionally during the year. Women represented 46 percent of this audience, amounting to 91.5 million female gamers.
The United Kingdom emerged as the single largest market in terms of player count, boasting roughly 25 million active gamers. Average weekly playtime across the continent fell slightly to 8.39 hours per person, down from 9.4 hours in 2024. Younger demographics, however, still logged substantial hours: children aged 6‑11 averaged 11.35 hours per week, while teenagers aged 12‑17 averaged 14.30 hours. These figures highlight the strong engagement levels among youth, which remain a critical focus for developers and policymakers alike.
Parental involvement in gaming habits is also evolving. Seventy‑five percent of European parents indicated a preference for taking an active role in setting limits on their children’s gaming activities. Correspondingly, 79 percent reported using at least one family‑setting tool—such as screen‑time controls, content filters or purchase restrictions—to monitor or curb gameplay.
Moreover, 74 percent said they have established agreements, conduct regular monitoring, or employ technical safeguards to manage online interactions and protect their children from inappropriate content. In the EU5 markets specifically, 72 percent of parents noted that their children did not make in‑game purchases. Among the minority who did, a striking 93 percent of parents claimed they closely supervised those transactions. Interestingly, the average amount spent by children who were permitted to buy in‑game items dropped by 13 percent compared with 2024, suggesting either tighter parental oversight, more cautious spending behaviour, or a shift in the pricing strategies of developers.
Taken together, these data points illustrate a vibrant yet maturing European gaming landscape: robust revenue growth driven by digital sales, expanding geographic coverage, steady employment, strong mobile dominance, and an increasingly conscientious approach to child safety and spending. As the industry continues to evolve, stakeholders can expect further diversification of markets, deeper integration of cross‑platform experiences, and ongoing dialogue around responsible gaming practices.