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See winners of the World Press Photo Contest 2025

Black and white image of people in traditional Japanese dress, some holding fans, with dramatic lighting.

A view from the frontlines — There are 42 winning photographers this year, selected from 59,320 entries. 

The winners of the World Press Photo Contest 2025 have been announced, whose work will be exhibited in over 60 locations worldwide, as well as being available to millions online. 

This year there are 42 winning photographers from 30 countries, with their work spanning Africa; Europe; North and Central America; South America; Asia-Pacific and Oceania; and West, Central, and South Asia.

Key themes for this year’s winning photos have documented uprisings, politics, migration, the climate crisis and gender. Spotlights on Iran, Sudan and Palestine are also included in the winners.

Joumana El Zein Khoury, Executive Director of World Press Photo, said: ​“The world is not the same as it was in 1955 when World Press Photo was founded. We live in a time when it is easier than ever to look away, to scroll past, to disengage. But these images do not let us do that. They cut through the noise, forcing us to acknowledge what is unfolding, even when it is uncomfortable, even when it makes us question the world we live in – and our own role within it.”

This year, there has been an increasing drive for locals to tell their own stories through their lenses, and of the winners, 30 are native to the land they photographed.

Lucy Conticello, Global jury chair and Director of Photography for M, Le Monde’s weekend magazine, said: ​“As much as the World Press Photo Contest award is an immense recognition for photographers, often working under difficult circumstances, it is also a recap of the world’s major events, however incomplete. As a jury, we were looking for pictures that people can start conversations around.”

Originally founded by Dutch photojournalists in the Netherlands, this year marks the 70th anniversary of the competition. This year’s Photo Contest saw 59,320 entries from 3,778 photographers in 141 countries. 

The 42 winners will receive €1,000 and a physical award, as well as being included in the annual travelling exhibition and yearbook. 

The World Press Photo of the Year winner will be selected from the 42 winners on April 17, and will win an additional €10,000 cash prize as well as a FUJIFILM GFX camera. 

See some of the winning entries below, and visit World Press Photo’s official website to see the full list of winners.

Africa

Fishing boats on calm waters surrounded by mountains, with people aboard the boats.
A man in a white suit sits on a chair in front of a red patterned wall, holding a rifle.
Monochrome image of scarred and roughened hands cradling a large rounded object, possibly a pregnant abdomen.
Black and white image of people in traditional Japanese dress, some holding fans, with dramatic lighting.
Crowd of protesters in street, police using water cannon, single individual in foreground shielding themselves, pink liquid spraying through the air.
Fishermen returning to the shore. Goma, North Kivu, DRC, 20 March 2024.

Asia-Pacific and Oceania

Surfer mid-jump, silhouetted against an overcast sky, with a surfboard on the water below.
Colourful open-top truck filled with commuters on a rainy urban street, with industrial chimneys emitting smoke in the background.
People wading through flood waters, carrying belongings on their heads.
Soldiers using heavy weaponry during combat at dusk, with light and smoke visible.
A group of people sitting in the back of a vehicle, outdoors against a cloudy sky.
Brazil's Gabriel Medina bursts out triumphantly from a large wave in the fifth heat of round three of men’s surfing, during the 2024 Olympic Games. Teahupo’o, Tahiti, French Polynesia, 29 July 2024.

Europe

Helmet-wearing woman in cold-weather gear holds a syringe, looking pensive.
Group of people attending to an injured person lying on a table in a dimly lit room with stone walls.
A person with short, dark hair and tattoos on their torso, standing in a room with colourful decorations.
Crowded auditorium with rows of seated people, dark blue curtains lining the walls, and lighting equipment visible on the stage.
Aged brick wall with large framed image depicting a cityscape, bench in foreground.
A protester rinses her eyes after police have deployed tear gas. She wears a protective ski mask, respirator, and gardening gloves (to pick up hot gas containers). Tbilisi, Georgia, 7 December 2024.

South America

Nighttime protest scene, large crowd gathered, waving flags and holding lights, person standing on raised vehicle in centre.
Flooded urban area with people wading through water, using boats to evacuate, on a submerged road with a large sign visible.
A person wearing a hat and carrying a bag, standing alone on a sandy beach.
Colourful flowtuing fabrics worn by three people, walking through a lush green forest.
Two individuals, an adult male and a young child, seated on a fallen tree trunk in a lush, green forest environment.
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado greets supporters from atop a vehicle during a campaign rally for the opposition presidential candidate, Edmundo González Urrutia. Mérida, Venezuela, 25 June 2024.

West, Central and South Asia

Young person with dark features gazing intently, wearing a white vest top against a plain background.
Monumental statue of a group figure amidst a crowd of onlookers against a cloudy sky.
Dramatic explosion with bursts of flames and sparks in a crowded urban street, people in the foreground observing the event.
Stacks of files and documents, a portrait photograph of a man in a suit visible on a blackboard.
Black and white image of people carrying materials up rocky, mountainous terrain.
Photographer Samar Abu Elouf was herself evacuated from Gaza in December 2023. She now lives in the same apartment complex as Mahmoud in Doha, where she has documented the few badly wounded Gazans who, like Mahmoud, have made it out for treatment. Doha, Qatar, 28 June 2024.

North and Central America

Large crowd of people, mostly men in suits, embracing and interacting with one another in front of an American flag backdrop.
Warm-toned figures gathered around a campfire, shrouded in shadowy light and dark hues.
Diverse group of people walking in urban area, carrying bags and luggage.
A black and white photo showing a person sitting on a chair, head in hands, with flowers and curtain visible in the background.
Monochrome image of a person performing on a stage, gesturing animatedly.
Members of the United States Secret Service help Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump off stage moments after a bullet from an attempted assassin hit his ear during a campaign rally. Butler, Pennsylvania, United States, 13 July 2024.

An exhibition showcasing the winning entries work will be on view in London at MPB Here East from May 23 to August 25.

Zahra Onsori is a freelance journalist. Follow her on Instagram.

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