WORLD GAMING SCULPTING THE FUTURE OF ICE


With ICE preparing for its third edition in Barcelona, G3 speaks to World Gaming Managing Director Stuart Hunter and Executive Director Margaret Dunn about moving beyond the relocation phase, prioritising quality over scale, making three days more productive and using World Gaming Week to bring the industry's different communities together.


than during the first Barcelona edition. At what point does growth become less about making the event bigger and more about improving the experience?


MARGARET DUNN Executive Director World Gaming


STUART HUNTER Managing Director World Gaming


Stuart, the first ICE in Barcelona was inevitably about proving the move from London could work, while the second was about building on those foundations. What does the third edition need to achieve?


Stuart Hunter: I think the first year proved that the industry was fully committed to the move. Every part of the ecosystem - exhibitors, attendees, suppliers, contractors and ourselves as organisers - approached Barcelona with a sense of discovery, but everyone invested in making it work. Te second year was about refining the experience and applying what we had learned. By the end of that edition, there was a feeling that ICE had really found its stride in Barcelona.


Te roots are now firmly established, so the question becomes how we use the platform we have created to anticipate what comes next for the industry. Our creative direction for 2027, "Welcome to the Playvolution", reflects that. It is about how gaming is evolving and how ICE can help drive and support that evolution.


ICE and iGB Affiliate occupied considerably more space in 2026


Margaret Dunn: Tis year our focus is very much on quality rather than quantity. We are not simply trying to attract the largest possible number of visitors. We are concentrating on the markets, communities and decision-makers that our exhibitors want to meet. Tis means taking a more community-led approach and looking closely at where the industry's growth is coming from and which audiences are most relevant.


Hall 7 is an example of that. It is carefully curated and brings together established technology businesses, emerging companies and innovative gaming suppliers. But if we expand the product mix, we also have to expand the relevant audience. Tat means attracting people such as CTOs, CIOs, IT directors, CFOs and data officers who may previously have been underrepresented at ICE.


Stuart: Te phases of growth have also been different. Te first year in Barcelona gave existing businesses the opportunity to expand after many had been constrained by the space available in London. Te second opened the event to more new businesses. Now we are looking at converging sectors that can add value to the gaming ecosystem. It isn't a question of simply taking more space because it is available.


Is there ultimately an optimum size for ICE, or do you envisage the physical exhibition continuing to expand?


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