Defqon.1 Festival

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Defqon.1 Weekend Festival
Defqon.1 Logo.svg
Genre hardstyle, hardcore, Rawstyle, Uptempo, Frenchcore and Electronic Dance music, hard dance
Dates Netherlands (since 14 June 2003)
Australia (19 September 2009-September 16, 2018)
Chile (12 December 2015 & 10 December 2016)
Locations Netherlands (since 14 June 2003)
Australia (19 September 2009- 16 September 2018)
Chile (12 December 2015 & 10 December 2016)
Years active2003–Present (Netherlands)
2009–2018 (Australia)
2015–2016 (Chile)
Founders Q-dance
Attendance300,000 (2024)
Website Defqon.1 Weekend Festival

[1]

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, 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 [2] from over 100 countries.

Contents

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 (2014 for the Australian edition) 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 (Penrith), [3] would be indefinitely suspended, since they were "unable to secure a suitable replacement venue for the event to take place [...]" [4] . 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 Centro de Eventos Munich in Peñaflor, near Santiago, before being discontinued.

Defqon.1 2025 mainstage Myownimageofdefqonmainstage.jpg
Defqon.1 2025 mainstage

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. [5] The festival was held in person again in 2022, with over 100.000 unique visitors. [6]

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 Power Hour, where the crowd joins together in energetic dance moves, followed by the spectacular Endshow filled with fireworks and lights. The weekend comes to an end with the Closing Ritual, a show with fireworks and lights that highlights the strong sense of community. Other traditions include Defqon Legends, where icons of the hardstyle scene perform their best songs, the Tribute, a show that ends the first day of the festival, and The Spotlight, 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 [2] 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, [7] and the Q-Dance [8] website for people all around the world to tune into.

Stages 2025

StageIndoor/OutdoorMain genres
RedOutdoor Hardstyle, Euphoric hardstyle, Rawstyle
BlueIndoorHardstyle, Rawstyle
BlackIndoor Hardcore & Uptempo Hardcore
UVOutdoor3 days Euphoric hardstyle & Hardstyle, 1 day Uptempo hardcore & Hardcore
YellowOutdoorUptempo Hardcore, Frenchcore, Hardcore
MagentaIndoorHardstyle classics, Euphoric hardstyle, Jumpstyle, Early hardstyle
IndigoIndoorRawstyle, Extra raw hardstyle
GoldOutdoorEarly Rave, Millennium Hardcore
SilverOutdoorIndustrial Hardcore, Hardcore
PupleOutdoor with roofUpcoming artists
GreenOutdoor Techno; open only on Saturday and Sunday
PinkOutdoor Drum 'n bass; open only on Friday
OrangeOutdoorHardstyle, Hardtrance

Festival history

YearLocationAnthem & ThemeNumber of visitors*Number of performersTicket PriceToken PriceDate
2003Almeerderstrand, Almere, Flevoland, The Netherlands 30 Minutes (DHHD)25,0004814 June
2004Demolition (Tuneboy)25,0007919 June
2005Emergency Call (The Prophet)25,0008518 June
2006The Colour of the Harder Styles (Showtek)27,50010317 June
2007Get Wasted (Brennan Heart)30,00012416 June
2008Biological Insanity (Luna & Deepack)30,00011914 June
2009Almeerderstrand, Almere, Flevoland, The Netherlands Scrap Attack (Headhunterz)35,00010413 June
Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia Maximum Force (Zany)5219 September
2010Almeerderstrand, Almere, Flevoland, The Netherlands No Time To Waste (Wildstylez)40,00011512 June
Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia Save Your Scrap for Victory (Headhunterz)7218 September
2011 Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The Netherlands Unite (Noisecontrollers)45,00012725 June
Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia Psychedelic Wasteland (Toneshifterz)7217 September
2012 Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The Netherlands World of Madness (Headhunterz, Wildstylez & Noisecontrollers)55,000150+€140,00 Weekend + Camping21–23 June
Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia True Rebel Freedom (Wildstylez)15 September
2013 Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The Netherlands Weekend Warriors (Frontliner)60,000200+€95,00 Weekend + Camping21–23 June
Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia Scrap The System (Brennan Heart)18,000 [9] 14 September
2014 Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The Netherlands Survival of the Fittest (Coone)60,000200+€105,00 Weekend + Camping27–29 June
Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia Unleash the Beast (Code Black)20 September
2015 Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The Netherlands No Guts, No Glory (Ran-D)60,000 [10] 200+€120,00

Weekend + Camping

19–21 June
Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia No Guts, No Glory (Frontliner, Dillytek & 360)21,00097$ 171,8018–19 September
Centro de Eventos Munich, Santiago de Chile, Santiago Providence, Chile Unleash The Beast (Wildstylez)30,0003312 December
2016 Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The Netherlands Dragonblood (Bass Modulators)100,000200+€122,50

Weekend + Camping

24–26 June
Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia Dragonblood (Toneshifterz, Code Black & Audiofreq)25,000$16817 September
Centro de Eventos Munich, Santiago de Chile, Santiago Providence, Chile Dragonblood (Frontliner)20,00010 December
2017 Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The Netherlands Victory Forever (Frequencerz)150,000250+€143 Weekend + Camping€2,70 = 1 Token23–25 June
Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia Eye of the Storm (D-Block and S-Te-Fan)30,00050+$17016 September
2018 Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The Netherlands Maximum Force (Project One)185,000250+€155 Weekend + Camping€2,89 = 1 Token22–24 June
Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia Dedicated To The Core (Coone)30,00050+$194,0015 September
2019 Walibi Holland Evenemententerrein, Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, The Netherlands One Tribe (Phuture Noize, Keltek, Sefa)78,000 Unique visitors [11] 218€3,00 = 1 Token28–30 June
2020Primal Energy (D-Block & S-te-Fan)--Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, an @Home event took place.
2021N/AN/AN/AN/AN/A
2022Primal Energy (Haunted Grounds) (D-Block & S-te-Fan; under their live act Ghost Stories)100,000 [6] 300+€226 Weekend + Camping€3,60 = 1 Token23–26 June
2023Path of the Warrior (Sub Zero Project) [12] 250,000 [13] 350+€249 Weekend + Camping€3,80 = 1 Token22–25 June
2024Power of the Tribe (Sound Rush)250,000350+€280 Weekend + Camping€4,00 = 1 Token27–30 June
2025Where Legends Rise (Vertile)268,236 [14] 370+€325 Weekend + CampingNo Tokens. Payment with wristband26–29 June
2026Sacred Oath (D-Sturb)€340 Weekend + CampingNo Tokens. Payment with wristband25–28 June

See also

References

  1. ↑ "These are this year's Defqon.1 Legends". Hardstyle.com. Retrieved 1 December 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Defqon.1 - alle evenementen & informatie". partyflock.nl (in Dutch). 2 February 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2025.
  3. ↑ Rota, Genevieve (30 May 2019). "Defqon.1 festival 'postponed indefinitely'". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  4. ↑ Defqon.1, Australia 2019 (29 May 2019). "Warriors, it is with great sadness to inform you that Defqon.1 Festival will not return to Australia this year". Facebook. Retrieved 14 June 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. ↑ "Defqon.1 at Home 2021". Q-dance. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  6. 1 2 "Report: Defqon.1 2022 - Primal Energy". Festival Fans (in Dutch). 5 July 2022. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
  7. ↑ "Q-dance". YouTube. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  8. ↑ "Q-dance". Q-Dance. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  9. ↑ Emma Partridge (15 September 2013). "Man dies at Defqon.1 music festival". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 15 September 2013.
  10. ↑ "Ruim 60.000 bezoekers bij Defqon.1". www.omroepflevoland.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 30 March 2018.
  11. ↑ "Defqon.1 2019 heeft alle verwachtingen overtroffen" (in Dutch). fok.nl. 3 July 2019. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  12. ↑ "Q-dance Reveals Defqon.1 2023 Theme, Anthem Creators, and More". edmidentity.com. 21 October 2022. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
  13. ↑ Bhanawat, Akshay (30 June 2023). "Defqon.1 Weekend Festival Looks Back On A Successful Edition With A Record Number Of 250,000 Visitors Over The Weekend". T.H.E - Music Essentials. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
  14. ↑ "Defqon.1 - alle evenementen & informatie". partyflock.nl (in Dutch). 2 February 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2025.

52°26′23″N5°46′06″E / 52.43972°N 5.76833°E / 52.43972; 5.76833

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