The 13th edition of WordCamp Europe 2025 took place in Basel, Switzerland, from June 5 to 7, 2025. One of the three largest WordPress events, along with WordCamp US and WordCamp Asia. Organized by the WordPress Community, which has grown so much that at times it feels like a borderless, decentralized country, where countless initiatives converge. WordCamp Europe 2025 was one of those moments where the members of this country came together.
How do you define what a WordCamp is? Well, I define it like this: it’s a WordPress Community party congress where you learn, collaborate, and network. It has been held for 19 years. It all started in 2006, in San Francisco. Since then, there have been 1146 WordCamps around the world, covering 65 countries in 6 continents. Its attendees are passionate people who collaborate in the development of WordPress.org, an open-source CMS used by 42% of the web. I joined this party, full of contagious positive energy, as an organizer in the Communications team. The planning of this project started a year in advance. Organizers and volunteers were the beating heart of this event that brought together 2000 people from 87 countries.
Contributor Day
It all kicked off on June 5 with Contributor Day, bringing together over 600 contributors. Let me explain what it is all about. It’s a gathering where teams that typically work online and communicate asynchronously get the chance to meet in person. And if you come for the first time, you can quickly get into the dynamics of these teams.
There are two main areas of contribution. One is technical, where you can test and report bugs in core, themes or plugins; write and submit patches to fix bugs or add new features; design or develop themes and plugins to share on WordPress.org; and even collaborate on WordPress mobile apps, either by improving code, testing or refining the user experience.
The second way to contribute focuses on non-technical skills. You can get involved by writing or enhancing documentation, translating software, themes, plugins, or even video subtitles into your local language. You can also support others in the forums, create or update tutorials and educational resources, or help promote WordPress through marketing efforts and community activities like MeetUps and WordCamps. Additionally, you can contribute photos to the Openverse library, assist in curating them, or share ideas that promote sustainability within the WordPress ecosystem.
Teams are organized around table leaders. Let’s see who they were in this edition:
- Accessibility: Joe Dolson, Amber Hinds. 5 tables.
- Community: Juan Hernando, 11 tables.
- Core: Benjamin Zekavica, George Mamadashvili, Christoph Daum, John Blackbourn. 10 tables.
- Core Performance: Felix Arntz. 4 tables.
- Documentation: Milana Cap, Estela Rueda. 5 tables.
- Five for the Future: Wes Tatters. 4 tables.
- Hosting: Lucas Radke. Con 6 tables.
- Marketing: Emma Young and Bernard Meyer. 8 tables.
- Formación (Training): Dennis Ploetner. 2 tables.
- Meta: Bernhard Kau. 1 table.
- Patterns: Chetan Prajapati. 2 tables.
- Photos: Roberto Vázquez, Michelle Frechette.5 tables.
- Plugins:David Pérez Garcia, Francisco Torres. 9 tables.
- Polyglots: Ahmed Kabir Chaion. 8 tables.
- Support: Yordan Soares. 5 tables.
- Test: Olga Gleckler, Piotrek Boniu. 3 tables.
- Themes: Ganga Kafle, Manesh Timilsina. 5 tables.
- Training: Sumit Singh, Rade Jekic. 2 tables.
- WordPress TV: Wajari Velásquez, Nilo Vélez. 1 table.
- WP CLI: Alain Schlesser, Nilambar Sharma. 6 tables.
Day 2 and Day 3. Presentations:
The second and third days were dedicated to talks, which are always highly anticipated due to the quality and relevance of their content. A total of 52 speakers from 23 countries participated. There were 45 sessions, each 30 minutes long, covering categories such as community, development, business, accessibility, AI, SEO, content, design, e-commerce, and sustainability. Additionally, there were 4 workshops focused on development. I will mention a few talks:
Marie-Charlotte Pezé with “Content strategies that make everyone happy”. Included in the content category. In her talk, she concludes that a people-centered approach, not only on algorithms, allows us to obtain satisfactory content for all parties: readers, contributors, and search engines (the “Google gods”). Its methodology is based on balance: audience, objectives, data, tools, and good style.
Maylén García with “The footer is no longer a forgotten corner.” Included in the design category. She proposes a paradigm shift: the footer is no longer a forgotten corner, but a powerful tool to enrich navigation, build visitor loyalty, and boost conversion. With current examples and innovative designs, she invites you to redesign the footer as a fundamental piece of your website.
Jason Mayes, Web AI Lead at Google, with “AI Agents in the Browser to Create Smarter User Experiences in the Future”. Included in the AI category. He expounded on the future of AI running directly in the browser (without relying on the cloud). He talked about web assistants with local models that protect privacy, can split tasks, access APIs, remember the context, and repeat processes without human intervention.
Héctor de Prada with “Tips for organizing a successful WordPress meetup in your city,” in the community category. He shared his experience organizing meetups in a medium-sized city of 120,000 inhabitants, with a recurring attendance of about 60 attendees per session and an 85% attendance rate. Hector talked about the importance of a strong team, sponsors, an informal atmosphere, and food to foster community.
Jamie Marsland, from WordPress.com with Live Website Reviews & Speed Build Challenge. In the development category. A fun live challenge, where Ellen Bauer and Fabian Kagy competed against each other, against the clock, to replicate a website design in just 30 minutes. They had to use only Gutenberg and available tools, showing their creativity, technique, and ability to handle pressure. A very popular session among attendees.
Noel Tock, from Human Made, with the talk “WordPress without limits”. This keynote talked about WordPress as a tool for digital freedom in global conflicts and crises. Noel mentioned examples such as supporting the Arab Spring, rescuing dogs in Ukraine, helping displaced people, and raising money in Ukraine through NGOs. WordPress’ mission, “democratizing publishing,” empathizes directly with those who have experienced firsthand the censorship and difficulty of publishing articles with opinions different from the status quo.
Fireside chat with Mary Hubbard and Matt Mullenweg, included in the community category. Topics covered included:
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). A European law that is very different from U.S. regulations—only California has implemented a similar law. Matt noted, from his personal point of view, the friction caused by cookie policies and the impact that data protection banners on European websites have on him.
Five for the Future: Many sponsors have repeatedly expressed the need to clearly see where their financial contributions are going. In this regard, Matt commented that they were “measuring input, not output.” In other words, the focus had been on the amount of time spent contributing rather than on the actual results generated by those contributions. A shift in approach was proposed—one that would translate time commitments into concrete impact indicators: the number of improvements, bug fixes, added features, or other tangible effects within the WordPress project. He also emphasized the need to develop better metrics to demonstrate the real value of contributions, beyond simply counting hours spent.
He spoke about the possibility of the WordPress Foundation establishing a legal presence in Europe, although they recognize that it is a complex process.
FAIR Project. Mary Hubbard asked about this project, to which Matt responded that, since WordPress.org is open-source, all such possible are welcome. He mentioned the challenges related to trust, deployment, and statistical analysis within the plugin repository. He added that he did not have all the information about the project yet, so he felt it was a bit early to go into further detail on the topic.
WordPress.org plugin repository. He mentioned recent security improvements to the official directory and the addition of automatic vulnerability scanning, to better protect users. Plugin requests are growing: backlog reduced from 6-8 months to one week, and submissions have doubled.
Academic credits with Campus Connect. Announced the launch of Campus Connect at the University of Pisa on June 25, 2025: 5,000 students will contribute 150 hours to the core to earn 6 academic credits. This initiative represents an opportunity to attract new talent, encourage energetic volunteering, and revitalize the student community.
Artificial Intelligence in WordPress. Commented on the creation of an AI team with a strategic mission. AI is already being used to automate tests, manage the plugin directory, and increase developer productivity.
Several topics were addressed in the public Q&A:
WooCommerce vs. SaaS. In response to questions from the audience, Matt reaffirmed that WooCommerce continues to receive investment and that its strength lies in customization, although he acknowledged that it needs to improve onboarding and collaboration with hosting providers.
Sustainability: Mary advocated that it should be integrated into all WordPress initiatives. Mentioned whether the community environmental channel should be reopened.
Call to improve internal tools like CampTix or replace Meetup.com.
To close this part, Matt said that he had “never been so optimistic” about the future of the project and the community. He also anticipated that WordPress 6.9 could be released in 2025.
Side Events:
These events are a fun part of WordCamps. Different people and companies organize side events to attend after the daily conference sessions. This year we enjoyed the popular Yoast & Blue Host Pride Party and the Post Types & Pints: Elementor, Cloudways, and WP Remote party. In addition, the “Picnic in the Park” was again held by Patricia Brun. The First Annual Cemetery Walk was held, starting with the Wolfgottesacker Cemetery Walk, an Ohia Thomson initiative. Meetups such as Blackwall & Syde Happy Hour, Brewing Stories: WordPress Tales Over Coffee by Analytify & SEO Repair Kit, and Blackwall & Syde Happy Hour. There was also a Meetup to talk about WooCommerce by Business Bloomer. A session on Stretching and Wellness: Movement for Creators, organized by DigiDev. In addition, we were able to attend the launch of the FAIR Project at the Alt Ctrl Org event.
If you want to propose a Side Event, you can prepare it for WordCamp Europe 2026.
Sponsors:
The sponsor area is always a lot of fun—there’s so much going on. You get to see firsthand the work and innovations of companies you interact with in your day-to-day use of WordPress.org. There are interesting swag, activities, raffles, and great conversations. This time, it was located on a different level than the talk sessions, but still part of the attendee experience throughout the venue. As always, it was a lively space with a lot of foot traffic.
Sponsors play a fundamental role in the success of the event. Thanks to their financial support, it was possible to cover logistical costs, provide accessible spaces, and create a rich, engaging experience for the entire community.
After Party:
And to wrap it all up, the after-party was the perfect space to unwind after the intensity of the conference days and all the networking. It was a relaxed and easygoing moment where we shared impressions, anecdotes, and words of appreciation with those of us who were directly involved in organizing the event, as well as with speakers, volunteers, attendees from all over Europe, and sponsors. And… well… we danced a lot too.
Throughout the event, you have the chance to finally meet some teammates in person, but sometimes it only happens at the very end. Just before I was about to leave the party, I was making my round of goodbyes when a group of us gathered, and badges were clearly visible. That’s when I saw the name of someone I only knew through Slack, someone I had spoken with often. Truthfully, I had been looking for him throughout the entire WordCamp, but organizers move around a lot within the venue. It was a pleasure to finally meet you, Val Vesa, and chat about the use of links in Instagram stories. What do you all think—should every IG story have a link?
And finally, on the dance floor, next to the giant #WCEU letters, I met another person I had exchanged many messages with on Slack. “Are you Gary Jones?” I asked as he peeked his head around one of the giant letters. “Yes, that’s me!” he replied. “What a joy, I’m so happy to meet you in person finally! Thank you so much for your support and for making the perfect proofread for the social media post texts.
We were joined by Matt Mullenweg, co-founder of WordPress, who was warm and approachable. He chatted with many attendees, posed for photos, and even gave us a mini interview for the WordCamp Europe Instagram.
It was the perfect ending. Music, laughter, dancing, and conversations that stretched late into the night, with people from all over the world enjoying as if they’d known each other forever. It was much more than just a party—it was a celebration of everything we experienced, the bonds we built, and the collaborative spirit that defines WordPress. And yet, it doesn’t spare us from the post-WordCamp blues.
Final:
The WordPress Community has grown so much that at times it feels like a borderless, decentralized country, where countless initiatives converge. This country got together at WordCamp Europe 2025, and it was an incredible meeting point where we shared, learned, and collaborated, all within the amazing span of just three days.
It was a unique opportunity to finally meet in person the many people we interact with every day across the vast paths of the Internet. We all contribute, in one way or another, to the growth and vitality of WordPress: from those who organize events and translate strings to those who design, develop, document, or share knowledge.
We look forward to this large-scale event with great excitement, and in the meantime, we’ll keep building the future of the web together. See you in Kraków for WordCamp Europe 2026.
Until next time, community!
Well, there is WordCamp Valencia “WordPress Tech Congress: WordCamp Valencia 2025” on Nov 8-9. Come and visit!
Other reviews about WordCamp Europe 2025:
https://patriciabt.com/blog/wordcamp-europe-2025-as-a-co-organiser/
https://ciudadanob.com/en/blog/2025/06/10/wordcamp-europe-2025-how-wonderful
https://wajari.com/en/blog/wordcamp-europe-basilea-2025
WordCamp Europe Official Photos:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/wceu/albums
Photo Credits:
Kostas Fryganiotis, Claudio Schwarz (@purzlbaum), Lennair, Chris Clarke, Thanh Nguyen, Nilo Velez, Jeroen Rotty, Paco Marchante, Marc-Wieland, Roan de Vries, Sathwik Prabhu, Roberto Vázquez, Maksym Kaharlytskyi, Atsushi Ando.
