ICE Barcelona 2026 confirms "explosive" registration numbers within 24 hours

Clarion Gaming has what it describes as "some explosive numbers" for the upcoming ICE Barcelona 2026, with more than 1,200 industry professionals signing up within the first 24 hours at icegaming.com.

Jody Frost, Head of Marketing at Clarion Gaming, said that early interest has exceeded expectations. "Within 24 hours of registration opening, an amazing 1,266 industry professionals from across the world had registered to be part of January's celebration of this wonderful industry.”

"Response has remained consistently strong, and we are currently tracking 10% above the record-breaking response for the 2025 show,” Frost added. ”We are in uncharted territory in terms of potential attendance, and all of the signs for January are extremely positive."

Clarion Gaming Managing Director Stuart Hunter said ICE continues to be the global platform where the gaming industry showcases its most important developments. ICE Barcelona 2026 will take place during World Gaming Week, running from January 18 to 23. 

“During that week, Barcelona becomes the epicentre of the global gaming industry and helps in so many ways to shape the future of gaming in the year ahead,” Hunter said. “It's an epic week that industry leaders, policy makers, regulators and influencers increasingly regard as a non-negotiable 'must attend’.”

He added that Clarion’s attendance figures are independently verified, providing transparency that is “rare in the gaming trade show space.”

The 2025 editions of ICE and the co-located iGB Affiliate events broke multiple records, attracting 59,101 unique attendees, surpassing the previous high of 52,345 set in 2024—the final year the events were held in London. ICE alone drew 50,019 unique visitors, an 11% year-on-year increase, while iGB Affiliate welcomed 9,082, up 24% from its previous record.

ICE and iGB Affiliate registered a combined visitation figure, which measures the number of person days spent at the Fira Gran Via Barcelona, of 107,664, another gambling industry world record.

Attendance was strong across several key markets, led by Spain (8,954 attendees), followed by the UK (6,518), Malta (3,074), Cyprus (2,328), Ukraine (1,938), the United States (1,730), Italy (1,496), Bulgaria (1,252), and Germany (1,157).

The 2026 edition of ICE Barcelona runs under Clarion's 'Growing the Power of Play' creative, which is driving the international marketing campaign in support of the show. The creative celebrates the pivotal role played by ICE exhibitors and visitors in cultivating, nurturing, and growing all aspects of the industry across every gaming sector and in every jurisdiction, according to the organizer.