Defqon.1 Festival


Defqon.1 Weekend Festival is an annual music festival held in the Netherlands. In the past, it was also held in Chile and Australia. Founded in 2003 by festival organizer Q-dance, the festival plays mostly hardstyle and related genres such as rawstyle, Hardcore (electronic [dance music genre)|hardcore], uptempo, early and euphoric hardstyle. Over the years, Defqon.1 has grown into the largest harddance festival in the world, attracting over 250.000 visitors from over 100 countries.

Events

The festival was previously held in mid-June on Almeerderstrand in Almere. Since 2011, it is hosted on the event site next to Walibi Holland in Biddinghuizen. Since 2009, the event has also been hosted in Sydney in mid-September, at the Sydney International Regatta Centre. Until 2011 the festival ran for 12 hours, from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm, and ended with a firework display. Since 2012, the festival was extended to three days. Since 2015, the Australian edition was extended to two days. Each edition also has an anthem, an official song that is played in conjunction with the festival. On 29 May 2019, Q-dance announced on its official Facebook profiles that Defqon.1 Australia, after a decade being held at the Sydney International Regatta Centre, would be indefinitely suspended, since they were "unable to secure a suitable replacement venue for the event to take place ". In addition to the Dutch and Australian editions, Defqon.1 was also briefly organized in Chile. The festival took place in 2015 and 2016 at in Peñaflor, near Santiago, before being discontinued.
2020 did not see Defqon.1 held after the Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte declared that all events in the Netherlands were cancelled until September 2020 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Defqon.1 was held virtually in 2021, with sets from participating performers streamed from the Defqon.1 website. The festival was held in person again in 2022, with over 100.000 unique visitors.
Defqon.1 has grown in recent years into a festival defined by its signature rituals, which for many visitors form the heart of the experience. One of the most iconic moments is the , where the crowd joins together in energetic dance moves, followed by the spectacular filled with fireworks and lights. The weekend comes to an end with the , a show with fireworks and lights that highlights the strong sense of community. Other traditions include , where icons of the hardstyle scene perform their best songs, the , a show that ends the first day of the festival, and , which places a chosen artist in the center of attention with fireworks and lights.
In 2025, Defqon.1 celebrated its anniversary edition and welcomed 250.000 visitors from more than 110 countries. This milestone once again confirmed the festival’s status as the world’s largest hardstyle event. The festival is livestreamed with video from the largest stages and audio for all the other stages through YouTube, and the Q-Dance website for people all around the world to tune into.

Festival history

YearLocationAnthem & ThemeNumber of visitors*Number of performersTicket PriceToken PriceDate
2003Almeerderstrand, Almere, Flevoland, The Netherlands30 Minutes 25,0004814 June
2004Almeerderstrand, Almere, Flevoland, The NetherlandsDemolition 25,0007919 June
2005Almeerderstrand, Almere, Flevoland, The NetherlandsEmergency Call 25,0008518 June
2006Almeerderstrand, Almere, Flevoland, The NetherlandsThe Colour of the Harder Styles 27,50010317 June
2007Almeerderstrand, Almere, Flevoland, The NetherlandsGet Wasted 30,00012416 June
2008Almeerderstrand, Almere, Flevoland, The NetherlandsBiological Insanity 30,00011914 June
2009Almeerderstrand, Almere, Flevoland, The NetherlandsScrap Attack 35,00010413 June
2009Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, AustraliaMaximum Force 5219 September
2010Almeerderstrand, Almere, Flevoland, The NetherlandsNo Time To Waste 40,00011512 June
2010Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, AustraliaSave Your Scrap for Victory 7218 September
2011Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsUnite 45,00012725 June
2011Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, AustraliaPsychedelic Wasteland 7217 September
2012Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsWorld of Madness 55,000150+€140,00 Weekend + Camping21–23 June
2012Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, AustraliaTrue Rebel Freedom 15 September
2013Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsWeekend Warriors 60,000200+€95,00 Weekend + Camping21–23 June
2013Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, AustraliaScrap The System 18,00014 September
2014Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsSurvival of the Fittest 60,000200+€105,00 Weekend + Camping27–29 June
2014Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, AustraliaUnleash the Beast 20 September
2015Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsNo Guts, No Glory 60,000200+€120,00
Weekend + Camping		19–21 June
2015Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, AustraliaNo Guts, No Glory 21,00097$171,8018–19 September
2015Centro de Eventos Munich, Santiago de Chile, Santiago Providence, ChileUnleash The Beast 30,0003312 December
2016Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsDragonblood 100,000200+€122,50
Weekend + Camping		24–26 June
2016Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, AustraliaDragonblood 25,000$16817 September
2016Centro de Eventos Munich, Santiago de Chile, Santiago Providence, ChileDragonblood 20,00010 December
2017Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsVictory Forever 150,000250+€143 Weekend + Camping€2,70 = 1 Token23–25 June
2017Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, AustraliaEye of the Storm 30,00050+$17016 September
2018Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsMaximum Force 185,000250+€155 Weekend + Camping€2,89 = 1 Token22–24 June
2018Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, AustraliaDedicated To The Core 30,00050+$194,0015 September
2019Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsOne Tribe 78,000 Unique visitors218€3,00 = 1 Token28–30 June
2020Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsPrimal Energy --Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, an @Home event took place.
2021Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsN/AN/AN/AN/AN/ACancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, an @Home event took place.
2022Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsPrimal Energy 100,000300+€226 Weekend + Camping€3,60 = 1 Token23–26 June
2023Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsPath of the Warrior 250,000350+€249 Weekend + Camping€3,80 = 1 Token22–25 June
2024Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsPower of the Tribe 250,000350+€280 Weekend + Camping€4,00 = 1 Token27–30 June
2025Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsWhere Legends Rise 268,236370+€325 Weekend + CampingNo Tokens. Payment with wristband26–29 June
2026Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The NetherlandsSacred Oath €340 Weekend + CampingNo Tokens. Payment with wristband25–28 June