2026 in Germany
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Incumbents
Events
January
- 1 January – Two people are killed in fireworks-related incidents during New Year's celebrations in Bielefeld.[1]
- 3 January – An arson attack on cables in Berlin causes a blackout affecting 40,000 households.[2] Left-wing Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group) claims responsibility and calls it a protest against fossil fuel usage and AI data centers.[3]
- 6 January – The governing coalition between the SPD and the BSW in Brandenburg is replaced by a new coalition between the SPD and the CDU.[4]
- 7 January – The government formally recognizes and establishes diplomatic relations with Niue, coordinating ties from the embassy in Wellington, New Zealand.[5]
- 8–11 January – 2026 Men's EuroHockey Indoor Championship in Heidelberg.[6][7]
- 20 January – Thousands of people protest across Dortmund, Frankfurt, and Bremen, in support of Kurdish forces against the Syrian Armed Forces in clashes in northeastern Syria.[8]
- 21 January – A dual German-Ukrainian citizen is arrested in Berlin on suspicion of spying for Russia.[9] The incident results in the expulsion of a Russian diplomat from Germany the next day.[10]
- 23 January – A Lebanese national is arrested at Berlin Brandenburg Airport on suspicion of membership in Hamas and plotting a terrorist attack in Europe.[11]
- 28 January – Sven Schulze is elected as minister-president of Saxony-Anhalt.[12]
February
- 2 February –
- 3 February – Two people are arrested on suspicion of plotting to sabotage several corvettes destined for the German Navy at a shipyard in Hamburg in 2025.[15]
- 5 February – The Federal Cartel Office orders Amazon, Inc. to return 59 million euros ($70 million) in profits from unfair trading practices.[16]
- 25 February – A suspect in the 2025 murder of Ukrainian politician Andriy Portnov is arrested in Heinsberg.[17]
- 26 February – A court in Cologne issues an injunction against the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution's designation of the AfD as an extremist organization pending a judicial review.[18]
March
- 5 March – A court in Berlin convicts a Syrian national for carrying out a antisemitic knife attack at the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe that injured one person in 2025 and sentences him to 13 years' imprisonment.[19]
- 8 March
- 2026 Baden-Württemberg state election: The Greens win a plurality of 30.2% in the Landtag of Baden-Württemberg, the CDU win 29,7% and the AfD win 18.8% in the Landtag.[20]
- A meteorite strikes a roof of a house in Koblenz, Rhineland-Palatinate. No one is injured.[21]
- 12 March – German economic crisis: Lufthansa pilots organize a 48-hour strike over ongoing pension dispute, causing major delays at all German airports.[22]
- 19 March – Germany drops out of defending Israel in the International Court of Justice's genocide case against Israel, citing their need to defend themselves in a separate case launched against them by Nicaragua.[23]
- 22 March – 2026 Rhineland-Palatinate state election
- 29 March – A nightclub burns down in Kehl, Baden-Württemberg. All 750 people inside are evacuated, three of whom are treated for shock.[24]
April
- 5 April – Three people, including two children, are killed and another is seriously injured after high winds cause a tree to fall onto an Easter egg hunt in Mittelangeln, Schleswig-Holstein.[25]
- 13 April – A wooden structure containing anti-semitic symbols is found outside the Eggenfelden tax office.[26]
- 28 April – A Kazakh national is arrested in Germany on suspicion of spying for Russia.[27]
May
- 4 May – A car plows into a crowd in Grimmaische Strasse in Leipzig, killing two people and injuring 22 others.[28]
Predicted and scheduled
- 27 May – 2026 UEFA Conference League final in Leipzig.[29]
- 11–23 August – 2026 FEI World Championships in Aachen.[30][31]
- 4–13 September – 2026 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup in Berlin.[32]
- 6 September – 2026 Saxony-Anhalt state election
- 20 September – 2026 Berlin state election
- 20 September – 2026 Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state election
- 31 December – The television channels One, Tagesschau24 and Alpha will close.[33]
Holidays
Source:[34]
- 1 January – New Year's Day
- 6 January – Epiphany
- 8 March – International Women's Day
- 2 April – Maundy Thursday
- 3 April – Good Friday
- 5 April – Easter Sunday
- 6 April – Easter Monday
- 1 May – International Workers' Day
- 9 May – Ascension Day
- 24 May – Whit Sunday
- 25 May – Whit Monday
- 4 June – Corpus Christi
- 15 August – Assumption Day
- 20 September – Children's Day
- 3 October – German Unity Day
- 31 October – Reformation Day
- 1 November – All Saints' Day
- 18 November – Repentance Day
- 25 December – Christmas Day
- 26 December – Saint Stephen's Day
Art and entertainment
Deaths
January
- 1 January – Hubertus von Pilgrim, 94, sculptor[35]
- 2 January – Lajos Rovátkay, 92, harpsichordist and musicologist[36]
- 4 January – Klaus Keitel, 87, politician[37]
- 6 January – Kathleen Muxel, 54, member of the Landtag of Brandenburg (since 2019)[38]
- 7 January – Dietrich Stratmann, 89, physicist and politician[39]
- 8 January – Jürgen Plagemann, 90, rower
- 9 January – Hans Herrmann , 98, racing driver[40]
- 12 January – Martin Willich, 80, politician[41]
- 13 January – Peter Duesberg, 89, molecular biologist[42]
- 19 January – Peter Radunski, 86, politician
- 20 January – Wolfgang Heichel, 75, singer (Dschingskhan)[43]
- 21 January – Rüdiger Erben, 58, member of the Landtag of Saxony-Anhalt (2006, since 2011)[44]
- 22 January – Francis Buchholz, 71, musician and bass guitarist[45]
- 29 January – Stefan Gossler, 71, actor
- 31 January – Gisela Engeln-Müllges, 85, mathematician
February
- 1 February – Rita Süssmuth, 88, president of the Bundestag (1988–1998) and federal minister for youth, family and health (1985–1988)[46]
- 3 February – Herbert Sukopp, 95, ecologist[47]
- 11 February –
- Christoph Luitpold Frommel, 92, art historian[48]
- Helmuth Rilling, 92, choral conductor[49]
- Peter Meyer, 85, footballer
March
- 1 March – Käthe Menzel-Jordan, 109, architect[50]
- 14 March – Jürgen Habermas, 96, philosopher and sociologist (The Theory of Communicative Action)[51]
- 14 March – Jochen Bachfeld, 73, boxer[52]
- 21 March – Carsten Träger, 52, politician (SPD)[53]
- 25 March – Alexander Kluge, 94, author, philosopher and film director[54]
- 28 March – Werner Asam, 81, actor[55]
April
- 5 April – Eberhard Riedel, 88, skier[56]
- 6 April – Christian Schwarz-Schilling, politician (CDU)[57]
- 8 April – Mario Adorf, 95, actor[58]
- 12 April – Leo Nowak, 97, Roman Catholic bishop[59]
- 30 April – Georg Baselitz, 88, painter[60]
