Level Up Salzburg has Grown and Plans for 2026

At the end of June, the Level Up Festival attracted around 11,000 visitors to Salzburg with its proven mix of AAA and indie games, cosplay and esports. The event will continue in 2026.
11,000 visitors, around 10 percent more than last year, came to the exhibition centre in Salzburg on 28 and 29 June for this year's Level Up 2025. Visitors were treated to three stages and over 15,000 square metres of space filled with a mix of games, cosplay and esports. It is a mix that is familiar from the various regional gaming community events that have become established in the GSA region in recent years.
Level Up offered various highlights, such as the final of the GSA CS Masters, which was won by Berlin International Gaming. In the gaming area, the Nintendo Area attracted many visitors, partly because Level Up was the first gaming event in Austria where the Nintendo Switch 2 could be played.
In the Indie Area, presented by the Salzburg University of Applied Sciences, teams from Germany and Austria exhibited a total of 40 indie projects. Over 85 artists and retailers were present in the Artist Alley. ‘Events are always a platform for encounters. It's about bringing people together, promoting direct contact – and celebrating the fun of a shared interest,’ said Alexander Kribus, Managing Director of the Salzburg Exhibition Centre. ‘LEVEL UP stands for exactly that – and we are very much looking forward to what is to come.’
As Kribus already hinted, the organisers have already started planning for 2026, as they announced at the end of the event. However, a date has not yet been set.