Overview
- City officials confirmed on Sunday that the 16-day Oktoberfest drew 7.4 million visitors, surpassing the previous high of 7.2 million and including about 447,000 guests at the Oide Wiesn.
- Organisers say a tightened security concept — a new security centre, 56 added cameras, AI‑assisted crowd spotting and extra crowdspotters — helped avoid a full closure and enabled short, targeted gate shutdowns on peak days.
- The festival was marred by several serious incidents: a 52‑year‑old security worker died in a Freefall‑Tower accident, a 47‑year‑old ride employee was critically injured and reanimated on the final day, and a coach crash en route to the festival caused further deaths; specialist police units are still investigating.
- Operational pressure rose with the crowd: police recorded about 1,851 deployments and roughly 845 reported offences, the Aicher ambulance service treated about 8,400 patients on site, and drug offences — especially for cocaine — increased versus 2025.
- Economic and service indicators rose with scale: festbier consumption reached about 6.7 million Maß, demand for non‑alcoholic and alternative drinks grew, public transport and waste loads climbed, and city leaders say lessons from 2026 will guide safety and logistics planning for future Wiesn.