ESC Congress broke new record with over 33,000 attendees
The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) annual congress has grown the past several years to become the largest cardiology conference in the world. The annual meeting broke all previous attendance records with more than 33,000 healthcare professionals from 169 countries this week. The ESC Congress was held Aug. 29 to Sept. 1 in Madrid.
"This year’s ESC Congress marks a turning point. Cardiology has never been more dynamic, interdisciplinary, and patient-centered. The convergence of groundbreaking trial data, newly released clinical practice guidelines and strong global representation makes ESC Congress 2025 a landmark event shaping the future of cardiovascular medicine," Professor Felix Mahfoud, the chair of the ESC Communications Committee, University Hospital Basel, Switzerland, said in a statement.
The American College of Cardiology (ACC) is the largest cardiology conference in the United States. The 2025 meeting reached 17,216 attendees, but it had been higher at some pre-COVID meetings. ESC had nearly twice as many attendees as ACC this year.
The ACC’s highest-ever total attendees was 33,083 in 2001 and the second highest since then was 29,150 in 2006.
This year's ESC program featured the release of five clinical practice guidelines and updates. There also were a record number of abstract and late-breaking science submissions from 115 countries. Top submitter countries included China, Japan, the U.S. and Italy. More than 1,100 sessions showcased practice-changing research, including groundbreaking results highlighted in 10 Hot Line and 28 late-breaking science sessions. Over 190 studies were published simultaneously in leading scientific journals, which Mahfoud said underlines the congress’s pivotal role in advancing cardiovascular science.
ESC celebrated its 75th anniversary meeting by welcoming Spanish King Felipe VI, who addressed the global cardiology community.
“Over the past few days at this congress in Madrid, you have once again provided us with a valuable example of dialogue. Because cardiovascular health—as we are reminded by the theme you chose for this year’s congress—is a global challenge, and because knowledge, when it contributes to progress, should encounter no borders," Felipe said in his address.
ESC Congress 2026 will be held Aug. 28-31 in Munich, Germany.
Dave Fornell has covered healthcare for more than 17 years, with a focus in cardiology and radiology. Fornell is a 5-time winner of a Jesse H. Neal Award, the most prestigious editorial honors in the field of specialized journalism. The wins included best technical content, best use of social media and best COVID-19 coverage. Fornell was also a three-time Neal finalist for best range of work by a single author. He produces more than 100 editorial videos each year, most of them interviews with key opinion leaders in medicine. He also writes technical articles, covers key trends, conducts video hospital site visits, and is very involved with social media. E-mail: [email protected]