France hosts roughly 2,300 congresses each year, drawing 2 million attendees and generating €1.97 billion in economic impact. The 2024 edition, analyzed in UNIMEV's Event Data Book, shows a mixed picture: solid domestic activity but a clear decline internationally.

Across a sample of 624 congresses (hosted in 59 congress centers and exhibition parks, over 780,000 combined attendees), average attendance rose to 1,357 per congress, up from 1,255 in 2023 (+8%). Average public opening duration held steady at 2.7 days, while build-up/breakdown time lengthened slightly (1.5 days vs 1.3 in 2023).

Conversely, the share of congresses with an international audience fell to 20%, down from 24% in 2023 — largely due to scheduling shifts tied to the Olympic year, which forced many organizers to postpone or relocate international events.

Health, medicine, pharma and biotech account for 46% of all congress attendees — nearly half of total activity — well ahead of industry/research/science (9%) and social/civic affairs (7%).

70% of congresses hosted at dedicated venues in France have fewer than 1,000 participants. Size distribution shows a slight erosion of sub-200 formats since 2019 (21% in 2019, 15% in 2024), in favor of mid-size brackets (200-499 and 1,000-4,999), suggesting a shift toward medium-to-large formats.

Internationally, Paris ranks 6th among cities hosting the most international congresses in 2024, with 124 events — down 5 places from the previous ranking. The capital now trails Vienna, Lisbon, Singapore, Barcelona and Prague, a decline potentially linked to the Olympics disrupting the professional events calendar.

Among French cities in the European ranking, Lyon-Saint-Étienne leads (38th globally), followed by Toulouse (46th), Aix-Marseille (63rd), Nice and Strasbourg (tied 69th), Bordeaux and Montpellier (tied 77th), Nantes (81st), Lille (84th) and Rennes (87th).

This dual trend — domestic strength paired with international decline — raises questions about France's ability to sustain its appeal for major global events once the Olympic effect fades.

Article written with the assistance of AI. Source: 2025 Event Data Book, UNIMEV; ICCA 2024 Ranking