Just a few days before the International Charlemagne Prize of Aachen is awarded to the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, Aachen's Lord Mayor Sibylle Keupen and Dr. Jürgen Linden, Chairman of the Charlemagne Prize Board of Directors, today (26 May) announced details of the award ceremony. Accordingly, around 700 people will attend the festivities in the Coronation Hall on Ascension Day, Thursday, May 29. Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz and King Felipe VI of Spain will give speeches paying tribute to the prizewinner. Professor Dr. Maja Göpel will also be a guest in Aachen; the political economist and sustainability scientist will be the speaker at the pre-event dinner in the Aula Carolina.
Europe's strong voice in the world
The Charlemagne Prize Board of Directors honours the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen with the Charlemagne Prize 2025 as an "outstanding leader, a strong voice of Europe in the world, who powerfully represents the interests of the EU and its friends".
The Chairman of the Charlemagne Prize Board of Directors Dr. Jürgen Linden also emphasized in the press conference that he is very convinced that the current Charlemagne Prize ceremony will send a "powerful signal for a common, self-sufficient and competitive Europe": "Because we know in which direction the speeches we will hear, especially on Thursday, will go."
Guests of honor
Among the guests at the Charlemagne Prize ceremony are former Charlemagne Prize winners Veronica Tsepkalo, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya and Tatsiana Khomich, representing her sister Maria Kalesnikava, as well as Martin Schulz, Dalia Grybauskaite, Jean-Claude Trichet, Jean-Claude Juncker and the 2024 Charlemagne Prize winner, Chief Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt. Robert Abela, Prime Minister of Malta, Luc Frieden, Prime Minister of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Albin Kurti, Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo and Edi Rama, Prime Minister of Albania, will also be present at the Charlemagne Prize ceremony in Aachen.
Gunther Krichbaum (Minister of State for Europe at the Federal Foreign Office), Hendrik Wüst (Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia), Nathanael Liminski (NRW Minister for Federal and European Affairs, International Affairs and Media and Head of the State Chancellery), Mona Neubaur (NRW Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy) and Herbert Reul (NRW Minister of the Interior) will also be attending the Charlemagne Prize ceremony in Aachen. Dr. Josef Schuster, President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, will also be a guest of honour at the Charlemagne Prize ceremony. Numerous other elected officials, ambassadors, consuls-general, representatives of churches and religious communities as well as of Aachen's twin cities have confirmed their attendance.
Award of the European Charlemagne Youth Prize
The European Charlemagne Youth Prize will be awarded on the Tuesday before the Charlemagne Prize ceremony on May 27. Hundreds of young people from the Member States of the European Union have once again entered the competition with very different and diverse projects that contribute to European understanding, promote the development of a common identity and are exemplary of Europe in action. This year, young people from Europe submitted a record-breaking 535 projects. "The Charlemagne Youth Prize is a success story and is attracting more and more applications. I look forward to seeing these lively, enthusiastic and inspiring young people who enrich Europe and who it so urgently needs," said Lord Mayor Sibylle Keupen. The representatives of the national winning projects from all over Europe are currently in Aachen for a four-day stay.
Charlemagne Prize Europe Forum
On Wednesday, May 28, the Charlemagne Prize Europe Forum traditionally takes place, also in 2025 at "Das Liebig"; this time under the theme "New Independence - Europe without the USA". In the immediate run-up to the Charlemagne Prize ceremony, European leaders from politics, business, science, media, culture and society come together here for a conference on perspectives and discuss pressing challenges. Currently, the focus is on the question of what impact the currently strained transatlantic relationship is having on Europeans' security and defence policy and what the EU's competitiveness in the global economy is like.
The program of the Charlemagne Prize Lecture
Ursula von der Leyen will also take part briefly in the Charlemagne Prize Europe Forum on Wednesday afternoon. Beforehand, she will visit RWTH Aachen University at 2.15 p.m. and will speak to students in the C.A.R.L lecture hall building and seek dialog. Prepared by students from the "Leonardo" project at RWTH Aachen University and the European University Alliance ENHANCE, the visit promises to be a special encounter with the President of the European Commission. At around 5.30 p.m., Ursula von der Leyen will visit Aachen Cathedral, where she will be welcomed by Canon Rolf-Peter Cremer.
Karlpreis LIVE at the Katschhof
At around 7.30 pm, the designated Charlemagne Prize winner will be a guest at "Charlemagne Prize LIVE" on the Katschhof. On the stage there, Medienhaus editor-in-chief Thomas Thelen will conduct an interview with the Commission President and introduce her and the Youth Charlemagne Prize winners present to the people of Aachen. The cultural program on the Katschhof begins at 4 pm. Gregor Meyle, whose studio albums "New York-Stintino" and "Meile für Meyle" have won gold awards, will be performing from 8.15 pm. In addition to more than a quarter of a million enthusiastic concertgoers, Gregor Meyle has also won an Echo and a German Television Award.
Charlemagne Prize Live: The celebration
On Ascension Day, the activities at Katschhof start at 11 am. From 11.15 a.m. there will be a TV broadcast of the ceremony on a large video screen on the market square. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the Charlemagne Prize Board of Directors and the guests of honor of the award ceremony are expected to make short statements on the Katschhof stage shortly after 1 pm. As things stand at present, various guests of honor will also be speaking alongside the Charlemagne Prize winner.
Great media interest
There is great media interest in this year's award ceremony. Three days before the Charlemagne Prize ceremony, the city's Department of Communications and City Marketing has received almost 100 requests for accreditation - including teams from ARD, ZDF and WDR, Periódico, Reuters, Television Espanola, Süddeutsche Zeitung, FAZ, efe press agency, DPA, Deutsche Welle, Funke-Mediengruppe, BILD, Euractiv, Börsen-Zeitung, AFP, Spiegel, as well as numerous regional media from Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands. The Charlemagne Prize ceremony will be broadcast live on WDR television from 11.15 a.m. on Ascension Day.
Vehicle fleet
For many years, the Mercedes-Benz Aachen branch has provided part of the vehicle fleet for the guests of honor at the Charlemagne Prize ceremony. "The fleet currently consists of comfortable and multifunctional model series with different drive variants, which are in use around the award ceremony," said Matthias Hindemith, Sales Director Passenger Cars Rhineland at Mercedes-Benz, in the run-up to the award ceremony. Vehicles from the EU Parliament area complete the fleet.
Pre-event dinner
Guests at the pre-dinner in the Aula Carolina can look forward to a selection of Heinsberg asparagus, peas, burrata and sprouts, veal cheeks "48 hours cooked" with spring vegetables, potato gratin and rosemary jus as well as a "Karlsschmarrn" made from woodruff, strawberries and balsamic quark. This menu also includes a vegetarian option. DORN - Catering and Events will once again be responsible for the catering. The dinner will be accompanied musically by Oscar Benjamin Hollmer (violoncello), a prizewinner and scholarship holder of the German Foundation for Musical Life.
Safety zones
On May 28 and 29, there will be various temporary road closures and no-stopping zones, particularly in the city center. There will be short-term and unavoidable restrictions for residents and businesses during this time. This also means that some catering establishments will have to remain closed. The city of Aachen and the Aachen police are making every effort to keep these effects to a minimum and to ensure access to homes. In order to keep access controls as short as possible, it is recommended that you carry a valid photo ID with you. Detailed information and an overview map of closures and passage points can be found on the police website at https://polizei.nrw/artikel/karlspreisverleihung-2025 and via the Whatsapp channel "Polizei NRW Aachen".
The city of Aachen and the Aachen police ask cyclists to park their bicycles outside the security area during this time. Bicycles located in the restricted area around the town hall on Ascension Day will not be accessible.
Five gatherings with several hundred participants have currently been reported to the police on Ascension Day. This may result in traffic disruptions in the city center.