Unlock Access to Premium Weekly Articles Plus All Features with a Pollstar Subscription!
To continue enjoying full access, please explore our subscription options by clicking View Plans
View Plans

Daily Pulse

European Festival Awards Kick Off ESNS 2025

EFA 2024 Jaap Kroon26
The team of Poland’s Open’er Festival around Mikolaj Ziolkowski, founder and director of promoting company Alter Art, posing with their Best Major Festival trophy. (Picture by Jaap Kroon)

As is tradition, the European Festival Awards were handed out on opening night of ESNS, which kicked off in Groningen, Netherlands, Jan. 15. Full winners list below.

Festivals from over 30 countries participated in the European Festival Awards 2024, over 300,000 single votes were been cast by the public, resulting in 104 shortlisted nominees in 13 distinct categories, not counting the Lifetime Achievement Award.

See: Finland’s Juhani Merimaa Honored For Lifetime Achievement At European Festival Awards 2024

EFA 2024 Jaap Kroon7
Wasserman Music’s Alex Hardee posing with his EFA. (Picture by Jaap Kroon)

Presenting partner of what marked the 14th edition of the EFA was See Tickets, EPS and 3F came on board as sponsors. Media partners include IQ Magazine, DIY Magazine, and Pollstar.

The ceremony traditionally kicks off ESNS, which will showcase Europe’s hottest new talent until Saturday, and provide a industry conference and networking event during the days. Keynotes at the conference include Alex Hardee (Wasserman Music), Katie Melua and her manager Sumit Bothra (SB3 Artist Management), as well as Dutch metal singers Anneke van Giersbergen and Sharon den Adel (Within Temptation).

Other attendees of ESNS 2025 include representatives of AIM, ATC Live, BBC, Beggars Group, Believe, BMG, BumaStemra, CAA, Deezer, EMMA, FKP Scorpio, FUGA, ICMP, ID&T, IFPI, IMPALA, IQ Magazine, Live Nation, MiDIA Research, Pollstar, PPL, Primavera Sound, PRS for Music, Roskilde Festival, Sony Music, Spotify, Universal Music, UTA, Warner Music Group, and many more.

See: Talking The Beating Heart Of ESNS With Managing Director Anna Van Nunen

All European Festival Awards 2024 winners:

The Take a Stand Award
EXIT Festival (Serbia)

Line-Up of the Year
Hellfest (France)

The Event Safety Award
Timișoara – Capital of Culture (Romania)

Agent of the Year
Anna Bewers, Wasserman Music

Best Small Festival
Gladiolen Festival (Belgium)

Newcomer of the Year
Benson Boone (USA)

The Brand Activation Award
Lowlands & IKEA (Netherlands)

Best Medium-Sized Festival
Montreux Jazz Festival (Switzerland)

The Green Operations Award
We Love Green (France)

Best Major Festival
Open’er Festival (Poland)

The Award for Excellence and Passion
Vlad Yaremchuk & Music Saves Ukraine (Ukraine)

Promoter of the Year
Gadget Entertainment Group (Switzerland)

New Kid on the Block 2024
Filip Košťálek, Colours Of Ostrava (Czech Republic)

Lifetime Achievement Award
Juhani Merimaa (Finland)

Subscribe to Pollstar HERE

FREE Daily Pulse Subscribe