Germany is European Market Leader when it comes to meetings and congresses. This has been confirmed once again by the current “International Association Meetings Market 2007” study released by the International Congress & Convention Association (ICCA).

Germany has achieved the lead position in Europe for the fourth year in succession and second place worldwide. Spain, in fifth place last year, has passed by England and France into third place.

German meetings industry representatives should not only be joyous about this continuity of excellent performance but also about their clear upwards trend: the gap between Germany and global leader U.S.A. has closed, whereas the distance between Germany and its other competitors has increased. And in the international city ranking: Berlin, last year at position number five, has taken a great leap forward to second place.

The annual ICCA “International Association Meetings Market” statistics present a comprehensive analysis of current trends and developments in the international meetings market.

Association and federation congresses examined by ICCA have to have a minimum of 50 participants, be held on a regular basis and rotate between at least three countries. ICCA, founded in 1963, has its head office in Amsterdam and collates information since 1972 on association events worldwide.

The comprehensive study carried out by the European Institute for the Meetings Sector (EITW) on behalf of the European Federation of Event Centers (EVVC), the German National Tourist Office (GNTO/DZT) and the German Convention Bureau (GCB) analyses this important economic segment, supplies up-to-date facts and figures and reveals forward-looking tendencies and trends.