Catalonia International publishes its report on the presence and representation of Catalonia in 10 major newspapers during 2025

Since 2019, Catalonia International has monitored the presence of Catalonia in 10 leading international newspapers: The Washington Post and The New York Times (United States), The Guardian and The Daily Telegraph (United Kingdom), Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung and Süddeutsche Zeitung (Germany), Corriere della Sera and La Repubblica (Italy), and Le Figaro and Le Monde (France). The Valencian cooperative Al Detall was commissioned to prepare the 2025 report [PDF in Catalan]. In addition to counting references and mentions of Catalonia and the member entities of the Consortium, the study also analyses its tone, key actors and sources of information, among other aspects.

Among the main findings of the report are the following:

• A total of 768 news items about Catalonia were published in the 10 newspapers analysed during 2025, equivalent to around two per day and lower than the previous year (1,000). This figure includes articles in which Catalonia is the main focus (20.8%), a secondary focus (18.8%), or simply mentioned (60.4%).
• By topic, sports (32%) and culture (30.1%) clearly predominate, ahead of society (20.1%), politics (11.8%) and economy (6.0%).
• The five most prominent topics in 2025 were: Catalan artists and festivals (112 items), FC Barcelona (101), various sportspeople (50), scientific studies and research (41), and books and films (37).
• The distribution of news items by country is fairly balanced, with the European block leading (Italy 29.8%; Germany 21.6%; United Kingdom 21.5%; and France 19.4%) and the United States behind (7.7%). The newspapers publishing the highest number of items were Corriere della Sera (150), The Guardian (93) and FAZ (90).
• Although the predominant tone of coverage is neutral - as is typical in news reporting - it is noteworthy that positive coverage consistently outweighs negative coverage, and even surpasses neutral tone in stories on gastronomy and tourism. The only exceptions are reports on housing problems and overtourism, and on politics, where negative tone exceeds positive. It is also confirmed that the greater the prominence of Catalonia in the article, the more positive the tone: when Catalonia is the main subject, positive tone is the most frequent category.
• Scientific research involving Catalan participation is a clear driver of prestige and reputation, with a predominantly positive tone. The UB is the university mentioned most often (27 items), followed by UAB (10), UPF (3), and URV, UdG and UPC (1 each). Tourism, by contrast, projects an ambivalent image. Catalonia appears as an attractive destination, especially in the Anglophone press, but also receives negative coverage as a factor linked to housing-related problems, particularly in cities such as Barcelona.
• In sports, FC Barcelona is the central actor, though not the only one, and the women's football team actually shows a higher proportion of positive coverage than the men's team. Regarding the club, reports on the reopening and construction delays of Camp Nou are mostly negative in tone. Some sportspeople are frequently identified with Catalonia when mentioned in international news, such as Josep Guardiola, Luis Enrique and Cesc Fàbregas.
• In politics, news about Catalonia often appears in relation to Spanish governability. Junts per Catalunya and Carles Puigdemont are the Catalan actors most frequently referenced in negotiations with Madrid, while Catalan President Salvador Illa appears as a stabilising figure. There are also expressions of concern about the rise of the Catalan far right in connection with the debate on immigration.
• The Catalan artists and cultural figures with the highest number of appearances in 2025 were Antoni Gaudí (26), Pablo Picasso (17), Salvador Dalí (12), Joan Miró (9), Rosalía (6), Ildefonso Falcones (6), and Jordi Savall (5). In connection with Catalonia, names such as George Orwell, Javier Cercas and Björk also appear.
• The list of media sources mentioned in news items about Catalonia is headed by the newspaper El País, followed at some distance by La Vanguardia and El Periódico de Catalunya.