Against all odds, Germany has won the Gelato Europe Cup, the European qualifying round of the Gelato World Cup, held in Sigep Rimini on 18 and 19 January. France came in second. Italy, the eternal winner of the competition, came in third, and Belgium, fourth. An unprecedented result that surprised everyone, especially after seeing first-hand the high level of work by France and Italy in the six tests: a tub of ‘recycled ice cream’, a gelato cake, a single portion in a glass, a gelato stick, a cream mystery box, and a fruit mystery box.

The eight participating countries (Albania, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Romania, and the United Kingdom) were judged by two juries: an ‘Artistic’ one that evaluated the decorative and aesthetic aspect, and a ‘Technical’ one that analysed the aspects related to flavor.

The German team, made up of Stefano Lucchini, Federico Sacchet, and Tiziano Santin, presented their work focused on the Amazon; The French team, made up of Dartois Herve, Allan Cartignies and Enzo Babtista, was inspired by haute couture; Italy, with Alessandro Racca, Gabriele Fiumara and Angelo Cardella, by Luna Park; and Belgium, with Fabio Marasti, Maryne Poppe and Jose Romero, were also inspired by the moon. All of them have a direct ticket to the 2026 Gelato World Cup.

This was the first Gelato Europe Cup to be held with Sergio Colalucci as the new president. There was a lot of expectation, after the controversy surrounding the last edition. The aim was to guarantee transparency with very clear rules.