Mawazine ranked first in Africa and 32nd worldwide in a new global festival attractiveness index, placing Rabat’s flagship music event among the most visible cultural gatherings assessed through multilingual social media data.
The Global Festival Attractiveness Index, developed by Yanolja Research with Purdue University’s CHRIBA Institute and Kyung Hee University’s H&T Analytics Center, evaluated 560 leading festivals worldwide using user-generated content in 14 languages supplied by Brandwatch.
The index placed Mawazine-Rhythms of the World ahead of all African festivals surveyed and within the global top 40. Morocco’s Fez Festival of World Sacred Music also appeared in the ranking, placing 138th.
Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in the United States topped the global list, followed by Japan’s Summer Sonic and Rock in Japan. Japan had seven festivals in the global top 20, including Awa Dance Festival, Sapporo Snow Festival, Fuji Rock and Sanja Festival.
Unlike conventional festival rankings that focus on attendance, infrastructure or economic impact, the Yanolja index measures how festivals are perceived by actual visitors and tourists online. Its model combines attractiveness, based on sentiment analysis, with reputation, measured through global buzz volume and language diversity.
In the Middle East and North Africa grouping cited in the index, Dubai Shopping Festival ranked highest after placing 29th globally, followed by Mawazine, then Saudi Arabia’s Soundstorm and Dubai Design Week.
Mawazine’s ranking comes ahead of its 21st edition, scheduled from June 19 to 27 in Rabat. The official 2026 program lists performances across several stages, including OLM Souissi, Bouregreg, Nahda, Salé, Chellah and the Mohammed V National Theatre.
The lineup includes Moroccan, Arab, African and international names, with the official program listing artists such as Ninho, Major Lazer, Tyla, Nicky Jam, ITZY, Rema, Tiësto, Ty Dolla $ign, Tamer Hosny, Wael Kfoury, Dee Dee Bridgewater and Dionne Warwick.
Mawazine has long been one of Morocco’s largest cultural platforms. Its 2025 edition drew more than 3.75 million attendees over nine days, according to organizers, reinforcing its place among the world’s largest music festivals by audience size.
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