Federal Research Minister Dorothee Bär will Give Opening Adress at Gamescom

In addition to Federal Minister Dorothee Bär, Hendrik Wüst, Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia, has also confirmed his participation in the political opening of gamescom. Both will also take part in the tour of the exhibition.

When Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz appointed Dorothee Bär as Federal Minister for Research, Technology and Space and therefore responsible for the games policies of the actual government, many in the industry considered it a certainty that the CSU politician would also visit gamescom. After all, Bär has been a regular guest in Cologne in the past. And now it's official: as announced by the organisers of game and Koelnmesse, Dorothee Bär will attend the official opening ceremony of gamescom 2025 on 20 August.

Bär will give one of the welcome speeches. She may also announce further news about the federal government's plans. Since Bär took over responsibility for games – once again – there have been numerous positive developments for the industry. She announced the re-establishment of a separate games department within the ministry. And the federal government's current draft budget, which still has to be approved by parliament, includes a significant increase in funding. If plans for a tax-based funding model and perhaps even the recognition of esports as a non-profit activity were to be put on the table, the federal government would have addressed the issues agreed in the coalition agreement relating to the games industry in record time.

But back to the gamescom opening. In addition to Bär, Hendrik Wüst, Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia, has also been confirmed as a guest and speaker at the opening. Wüst has also been a fixture on the gamescom political scene for many years. Bär and Wüst will also take part in the official tour of the exhibition.

However, it has not yet been officially confirmed whether Henriette Reker, Mayor of Cologne, will also speak at gamescom as in previous years. For Reker, it would be her last appearance at gamescom as acting mayor of Cologne. The popular, independent politician, who was seriously injured in a politically motivated attack with a right-wing extremist background in 2015, has ruled out running for re-election in 2025.

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