Eventex Awards releases The Eventex Excellence Report 2026

Tsveta van Son

August 17, 2026

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min

Eventex Awards, the world’s leading awards for events and experiential marketing, has unveiled The Eventex Excellence Report 2026, which uncovers the creativity and innovation behind the most outstanding work in the 16th edition of Eventex Awards.

The report has been prepared by the team behind Eventex Awards, which analyzed a record 1,405 entries from 58 countries — the largest field in the awards' history — and the winners recognized with Grand Prix, Platinum, or Gold. The result is a comprehensive study of what sets excellent work apart, structured around six dimensions of excellence, plus a seventh chapter recognizing the people and places behind them:

Everywhere, all at once

events built to live across multiple cities or extended timeframes
AI as a creative partner

artificial intelligence shaping ideas, not just executing them
The city becomes the stage

architecture and public space as the storyteller
Beyond the event

work designed to leave a lasting mark after the event ends
Play your way through

audiences as players, shaping the experience they came to enjoy
Experiences with a mission

formats built so that taking part is the message
Behind the excellence

the agencies, teams, and venues that make the work possible

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The report's central finding is that excellence in 2026 rarely comes from a single dimension — it compounds. The year's most decorated projects, from an Olympic opening ceremony staged across four cities to a museum opening narrated by an AI-recreated voice, each combine three or more of these patterns at once.

Each dimension is backed by comparative statistics across award tiers and a curated selection of case studies from Eventex Awards 2026's most awarded entries, with jury feedback included throughout to illuminate the conceptual and practical sides of the work.

Excellence is the standard the events and experiences industry sets for itself — the proof that creativity, craft, and innovation still define our work. This report is our way of showing what that standard looks like in practice: the concrete patterns behind the work that moves audiences, wins clients back, and sets the direction for where the industry goes next.

Ovanes OvanessianCo-founder of Eventex Awards

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The Eventex Excellence Report 2026 is available

Read now

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About Eventex Awards

Founded in 2009 to celebrate creativity, innovation, and effectiveness in the industry, today Eventex Awards is the most esteemed international awards in the world of events and experiential marketing. Every year, the awards highlight the best agencies, events, tech, suppliers, and venues from the world of events.

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Written by:

Tsveta van Son

Copywriting specialist

An experienced copywriter, editor, and translator, Tsveta writes for Eventex where she covers everything from experience marketing trends to the stories behind the event industry's top award-winning campaigns. With a background in journalism and a soft spot for Icelandic grammar, she believes the best content is precise, useful, and never boring.

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