RIMINI – Nine hundred thousand visitors, 150 encounters, 13 exhibitions, 13 shows and 3,300 volunteers. These are the numbers marking the close of the 47th edition of the Meeting for Friendship Among Peoples in Rimini, an edition made memorable this year by the visit of Pope Leo XIV.
Drawing up the final balance sheet is Bernhard Scholz, president of the Meeting Foundation. “Responsibility and profound gratitude accompany us at the conclusion of this edition. The 2026 Meeting confirmed the historic mission that the Holy Father reaffirmed: to be ‘a crossroads for the Church and for society, an encounter that multiplies encounters and inspires new paths’.”
The Pope’s presence was itself one of the central moments of the event. “It was a great celebration, one that exceeded all our expectations, experienced and shared by everyone — children, young people, adults — with joy and enthusiasm. We were able to welcome the Holy Father with gratitude, but even before that, we felt welcomed by him,” Scholz said.
Built around the theme “The love that moves the sun and the other stars” (“L’amor che move il sole e l’altre stelle”), the 2026 Meeting unfolded over six days with a programme of talks, exhibitions, performances and moments of dialogue. Alongside the overall 900,000 admissions, the event drew on the work of 3,300 volunteers, who staffed the organisation and the spaces dedicated to younger visitors, including the Yoga Children’s Village and the Enel Sport Village.
The closing report also highlighted the influence on the debates of the encyclical “Magnifica Humanitas” and of the address delivered by the Pope in Rimini — a speech that, according to organisers, “will mark the history of the Meeting.”
With the 2026 edition now behind them, the date for next year’s gathering has already been set. The 48th edition of the Meeting for Friendship Among Peoples will take place from 20 to 25 August 2027, under the title “Courageous pioneers to safeguard humanity”.
Source: ANSA.
