In 17 out of 19 European countries, more people are leaving than returning. Germany tops the list with a net loss of 91,000 people in 2024, followed by Italy with just under 65,000 and Spain with over 31,000.
At the 1990 World Cup, just one in four national team players played abroad, 2026, it’s already 72%. A look at the individual nations reveals just how varied the situation is. For eleven of the 48 World Cup participants, the entire squad is under contract abroad.
Climate change does not affect everyone equally. Those who need cooling the most are often those who can least afford it. As temperatures rise, this air-conditioning gap is likely to become even more significant.
Workation is no longer a niche trend. Searches for the term have risen by 13% in 2025, and no country searches for it as often as Germany: 52% of all global workation searches come from here. We analysed 630 cities to find out where work and travel can best be combined.
Drink-driving in decline?
The numbers say yes. Over the past decade, most EU countries have cut both their overall and alcohol-related road deaths, in many cases substantially. Romania leads the field with a 71% drop in alcohol-related fatalities since 2011.
The end of the purchase subsidy has hit the EV market in Germany harder than in many other European countries. In 2024, new BEV registrations fell by 27.4%, the sharpest decline following the end of a subsidy scheme.
Every day, the media reports on new insolvencies. It hardly matters which sector is affected anymore. Fashion retailers, restaurant chains, shoe shops or construction firms – it affects every sector of the economy.
The dream of owning a house with a private garden right outside the front door is increasingly becoming a luxury in Europe. On average across the EU, just over half of the population lives in a house; in Germany, the figure is only 38.5%, while in Ireland it is as high as 90%.
The number of road deaths in Germany has been falling for years. At the same time, the risks faced by cyclists are shifting. One in six road deaths in 2024 involved a cyclist.
Germany's record number of sick days recently made headlines and fuelled the narrative of a ‘lazy society’, but in a European comparison, Germany ranks only seventh with 3.6 weeks of absenteeism, which is only slightly above the European average.