The Rimi Riga Marathon, which attracted a record number of runners from 109 countries worldwide to the Latvian capital in May 2025, has brought almost EUR 17 million to the Riga economy this year.
“We are pleased that the dedicated joint work of Rimi Riga Marathon organisers and Riga City Council, which has been invested over the years to attract marathon runners to Riga, has resulted in such impressive results. The growth in all indicators – both in the number of participants and economic contribution – proves the international competitiveness of Riga’s largest annual sporting event and its huge potential,” said Riga Mayor Viesturs Kleinbergs.
Foreigners, who came to the 35th anniversary of the most popular grassroots sporting event in the Baltics this year by 40 per cent more than last year, stayed and spent an average of four days in Riga, bringing in EUR 7.46 million to Latvia’s accommodation and catering sector, and up to EUR 2.48 million in tax revenue for the state.
The success in attracting marathon tourists once again confirms Riga’s international competitiveness and potential as Europe’s “running capital city”, as well as Rimi Riga Marathon’s membership in the elite of European running events.
The Rimi Riga Marathon Economic Impact Study, which was carried out following the methodology of the Ministry of Education and Science by surveying participants of the race, estimates that the event has attracted EUR 16,759,900 in foreign funds to the Latvian economy, or significantly more than in 2024, when the Rimi Riga Marathon economic impact was estimated at EUR 10.5 million.
The amount of tax collected from foreigners’ spending has also increased significantly – from EUR 1.5 million last year to EUR 2.48 million this year. Likewise, the study concludes that for every euro allocated by the Riga City Council (total Riga City Council co-financing for the marathon in 2025 was EUR 191,060), the event has attracted EUR 88 to the economy of Riga and the sub-Riga region.
Significant growth of marathon tourist traffic in Riga
The major increase in the economic impact of the Rimi Riga Marathon is directly related to the rise in the number of foreign participants and their fellow travellers, cementing the Rimi Riga Marathon as one of the most important sports tourism events in the region.
A record number of 40,122 (33,033 last year) participants took part in the Marathon in May, 6,017 of which were foreign runners. This is a significant increase compared to 4,305 foreign participants in 2024. In addition, the study reveals that 69% of foreign participants travelled to Riga with family or friends, bringing the total number of foreign visitors to 12,346 from 109 countries. Guests stayed in Latvia for 3.9 days, spending EUR 333 per day on average. This makes a total of 48,095 nights in Riga with a contribution of EUR 7.46 million to the Latvian accommodation and catering sector.
The largest number of foreign participants came from Germany, the UK, Lithuania, Finland and Estonia, which were also among the most represented countries last year. International participants mostly chose long distances: the classic marathon (42.195 km), half marathon and 10 km.
“The significant increase in the number of foreign runners is due to targeted campaigns in our main markets, both through successful cooperation with well-known opinion leaders, namely, runfluencers in the running communities, and through active export or promotion of Riga, the legacy of the World Running Championships in Riga, “These figures confirm that the Rimi Riga Marathon is not only a celebration of grassroots sports and the city, but also an important tourism driver for Riga and Latvia.”
Next year on 16 and 17 May
The organisers plan to raise the international profile of the Rimi Riga Marathon even higher in the coming years. Already now, nine months before the 2026 event, representatives from 41 countries have registered for the various distances. The organisers recommend that you do not delay your registration. Take advantage of the best registration rates for next year’s event, which will be valid until the end of September. Registration for all distances (except Children’s Day, for which registration opens in spring as usual) is available at www.rimirigamarathon.com.