World Press Photo announces 2025 winners

28 March 2025
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World Press Photo has announced the winners of its 2025 World Press Photo Contest, showcasing some of the world’s finest photojournalism and documentary photography.

This year the competition has expanded significantly, growing from 33 total winners in 2024 to 42 in 2025.

For the past three years, there has been one winning Single and one winning Story per region. This year, there are three winners in each of these categories per region. There's also one Long-Term Project winner per region. 

In addition, on 17 April, the overall 2025 World Press Photo of the Year winner and two finalists will be announced, with every winning photographer eligible for the Photo of the Year award. The 2025 Contest also takes place as part of the 70th anniversary celebrations for World Press Photo. 

Executive Director World Press Photo, Joumana El Zein Khoury, said the world is not the same as it was in 1955 when World Press Photo was founded.

"We live in a time when it is easier than ever to look away, to scroll past, to disengage. But these images do not let us do that. They cut through the noise, forcing us to acknowledge what is unfolding, even when it is uncomfortable, even when it makes us question the world we live in - and our own role within it."

You can see a selection of images from the 42 winners below. The exhibition of all the winners will also head to Sydney in May. 

Winner, South America, Singles. Anselmo Cunha, Agence France-Presse. A stranded Boeing 727-200 surrounded by floodwaters at Salgado Filho International Airport. Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, 20 May 2024. Between April and June 2024, record-breaking rainfall in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, led to the worst flood in the area’s history. More than half a million people were displaced and more than 183 died in the floods. According to scientists, climate change – driven primarily by the burning of fossil fuels, including those used in passenger air travel – almost certainly intensified the floods. In the larger context of the global climate crisis, this image of a plane suspended between sky and water becomes a foreboding symbol.
Winner, South America, Singles. Anselmo Cunha, Agence France-Presse. A stranded Boeing 727-200 surrounded by floodwaters at Salgado Filho International Airport. Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, 20 May 2024. Between April and June 2024, record-breaking rainfall in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, led to the worst flood in the area’s history. More than half a million people were displaced and more than 183 died in the floods. According to scientists, climate change – driven primarily by the burning of fossil fuels, including those used in passenger air travel – almost certainly intensified the floods. In the larger context of the global climate crisis, this image of a plane suspended between sky and water becomes a foreboding symbol.
Winner, West, Central, and South Asia, Singles. Suvra Kanti Das for The Daily Prothom Alo. People vandalize a statue of former Bangladesh president, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the father of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who had resigned following weeks of unrest. Dhaka, Bangladesh, 5 August 2024.
Winner, West, Central, and South Asia, Singles. Suvra Kanti Das for The Daily Prothom Alo. People vandalize a statue of former Bangladesh president, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the father of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who had resigned following weeks of unrest. Dhaka, Bangladesh, 5 August 2024.
Winner, South America, Stories. Santiago Mesa. The Emberá Dobida community of Puerto Antioquia, in Chocó, has 141 inhabitants and has reported more than 15 suicide attempts since 2015. Chocó, Colombia, 21 June 2024.
Winner, South America, Stories. Santiago Mesa. The Emberá Dobida community of Puerto Antioquia, in Chocó, has 141 inhabitants and has reported more than 15 suicide attempts since 2015. Chocó, Colombia, 21 June 2024.
Winner, South America, Stories. Musuk Nolte, Panos Pictures. Bertha Foundation. A man drags a boat through shallow water near São Francisco de Marina. Drought has grounded floating homes and made travel by river nearly impossible. Manaus, Brazil, 4 October 2024.
Winner, South America, Stories. Musuk Nolte, Panos Pictures. Bertha Foundation. A man drags a boat through shallow water near São Francisco de Marina. Drought has grounded floating homes and made travel by river nearly impossible. Manaus, Brazil, 4 October 2024.
Winner, South America, Singles, André Coelho, EFE. Two of Brazil’s oldest and most venerable football clubs met at the Mâs Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires, Argentina, for the final match of the Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol (CONMEBOL) Libertadores cup. Botafogo, a team that has never before won the cup, defeated its rivals Atlético Mineiro by 3-1. Thousands of Botafogo fans, watching the match on screens at the Nilton Santos Stadium, the team’s home stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, celebrate their team’s historic victory. Here, Botafogo fans celebrate their team’s victory. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 30 November 2024.
Winner, South America, Singles, André Coelho, EFE. Two of Brazil’s oldest and most venerable football clubs met at the Mâs Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires, Argentina, for the final match of the Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol (CONMEBOL) Libertadores cup. Botafogo, a team that has never before won the cup, defeated its rivals Atlético Mineiro by 3-1. Thousands of Botafogo fans, watching the match on screens at the Nilton Santos Stadium, the team’s home stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, celebrate their team’s historic victory. Here, Botafogo fans celebrate their team’s victory. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 30 November 2024.
Winner, North and Central America, Stories. Rebecca Kiger, Center for Contemporary Documentation/TIME. Phil Gurley (left) of the EPA gives a presentation on the remediation process to a biology class at East Palestine High School. East Palestine, Ohio, United States, 12 October 2023.
Winner, North and Central America, Stories. Rebecca Kiger, Center for Contemporary Documentation/TIME. Phil Gurley (left) of the EPA gives a presentation on the remediation process to a biology class at East Palestine High School. East Palestine, Ohio, United States, 12 October 2023.
Winner, North and Central America, Singles. Jabin Botsford for The Washington Post. Members of the United States Secret Service help Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump off stage moments after a bullet from an attempted assassin hit his ear during a campaign rally. Butler, Pennsylvania, United States, 13 July 2024.
Winner, North and Central America, Singles. Jabin Botsford for The Washington Post. Members of the United States Secret Service help Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump off stage moments after a bullet from an attempted assassin hit his ear during a campaign rally. Butler, Pennsylvania, United States, 13 July 2024.
Winner, Europe, Long-Term Projects, Aliona Kardash, DOCKS Collective for Stern Magazine. Footage from a drone attack on a Ukrainian target is displayed alongside trophies from the front, in an exhibition at a Tomsk local history museum. Tomsk, Russia, 2 April 2024.
Winner, Europe, Long-Term Projects, Aliona Kardash, DOCKS Collective for Stern Magazine. Footage from a drone attack on a Ukrainian target is displayed alongside trophies from the front, in an exhibition at a Tomsk local history museum. Tomsk, Russia, 2 April 2024.
Winner, Europe, Singles, Prins de Vos, Queer Gallery. Mika (21) has been waiting for 22 months for a first consultation at a gender clinic. Meanwhile, he has personally covered the costs of top surgery and hormone treatment. He finally had his first consultation in May 2024. Rotterdam, the Netherlands, 2 February 2024. Prolonged waits for first appointments for gender-affirmation (supporting a person in being able to live as the gender they identify with) are a reality both in the Netherlands and globally. The toll on non-binary and trans people’s wellbeing can be profound, causing frustration, isolation, and despair. The photographer aims to highlight these issues, foster a greater understanding of the impact waiting has on people’s lives, and to encourage a more inclusive and compassionate approach to gender-affirming care.
Winner, Europe, Singles, Prins de Vos, Queer Gallery. Mika (21) has been waiting for 22 months for a first consultation at a gender clinic. Meanwhile, he has personally covered the costs of top surgery and hormone treatment. He finally had his first consultation in May 2024. Rotterdam, the Netherlands, 2 February 2024. Prolonged waits for first appointments for gender-affirmation (supporting a person in being able to live as the gender they identify with) are a reality both in the Netherlands and globally. The toll on non-binary and trans people’s wellbeing can be profound, causing frustration, isolation, and despair. The photographer aims to highlight these issues, foster a greater understanding of the impact waiting has on people’s lives, and to encourage a more inclusive and compassionate approach to gender-affirming care.
Winner, Asia-Pacific and Oceania, Long-Term Projects. Tatsiana Chypsanava, Pulitzer Center, New Zealand Geographic. Recent changes by New Zealand’s right-wing government are seen as reversals of such hard-fought progressive policies regarding indigenous peoples. Yet the Tataiwhetu Trust farm in Te Urewera offers a revitalizing model for a younger generation. Here, children from the Teepa family drive the younger siblings home, after a swim in the river. Tūhoe children are taught independence and to care for other family members. Ruatoki, New Zealand, 27 January 2022.
Winner, Asia-Pacific and Oceania, Long-Term Projects. Tatsiana Chypsanava, Pulitzer Center, New Zealand Geographic. Recent changes by New Zealand’s right-wing government are seen as reversals of such hard-fought progressive policies regarding indigenous peoples. Yet the Tataiwhetu Trust farm in Te Urewera offers a revitalizing model for a younger generation. Here, children from the Teepa family drive the younger siblings home, after a swim in the river. Tūhoe children are taught independence and to care for other family members. Ruatoki, New Zealand, 27 January 2022.
Winner, Asia-Pacific and Oceania, Stories, Ye Aung Thu. Members of the Special Operations Force (SOF), a PDF unit, dig graves for four resistance fighters who died in an attack on a government military camp. Taung Soon, Kayin State, Myanmar, 26 April 2024.
Winner, Asia-Pacific and Oceania, Stories, Ye Aung Thu. Members of the Special Operations Force (SOF), a PDF unit, dig graves for four resistance fighters who died in an attack on a government military camp. Taung Soon, Kayin State, Myanmar, 26 April 2024.
Winner, Asia Pacific and Oceania, Stories, Chalinee Thirasupa, Reuters. A long-tailed macaque looks into a motorbike’s side mirror, near Phra Prang Sam Yot temple. Lopburi, Thailand, 3 February 2024.
Winner, Asia Pacific and Oceania, Stories, Chalinee Thirasupa, Reuters. A long-tailed macaque looks into a motorbike’s side mirror, near Phra Prang Sam Yot temple. Lopburi, Thailand, 3 February 2024.
Winner, Asia-Pacific and Oceania, Singles. Jerome Brouillet, Agence France-Presse. Brazil's Gabriel Medina bursts out triumphantly from a large wave in the fifth heat of round three of men’s surfing, during the 2024 Olympic Games. Teahupo’o, Tahiti, French Polynesia, 29 July 2024.
Winner, Asia-Pacific and Oceania, Singles. Jerome Brouillet, Agence France-Presse. Brazil's Gabriel Medina bursts out triumphantly from a large wave in the fifth heat of round three of men’s surfing, during the 2024 Olympic Games. Teahupo’o, Tahiti, French Polynesia, 29 July 2024.
Winner, Africa, Long-Term Projects, Cinzia Canneri, Association Camille Lepage. Despite experiencing trauma, the girls find strength and support in their shared experiences, fostering resilience, self-confidence, and collective strength. Um Rakuba Refugee camp, Gedaref, Sudan, 4 June 2021.
Winner, Africa, Long-Term Projects, Cinzia Canneri, Association Camille Lepage. Despite experiencing trauma, the girls find strength and support in their shared experiences, fostering resilience, self-confidence, and collective strength. Um Rakuba Refugee camp, Gedaref, Sudan, 4 June 2021.
Winner, Africa, Long-term projects. Women's Bodies as Battlefields. © Cinzia Canneri, Association Camille Lepage. Zayid (23, not her real name) shows a scar left by a bullet. Zayid was raped at a refugee camp in Amhara. When fleeing to Addis Ababa with her family, she and her sister were shot and wounded by Amhara soldiers. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 30 November 2022.
Winner, Africa, Long-term projects. Women's Bodies as Battlefields. © Cinzia Canneri, Association Camille Lepage. Zayid (23, not her real name) shows a scar left by a bullet. Zayid was raped at a refugee camp in Amhara. When fleeing to Addis Ababa with her family, she and her sister were shot and wounded by Amhara soldiers. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 30 November 2022.
Winner, Africa, Singles. Mother Moves, House Approves. © Temiloluwa Johnson. Participants at “Heavenly Bodies,” an underground drag ballroom event during Lagos Pride, celebrate the “mother of the year” winner. Lagos, Nigeria, 21 June 2024.
Winner, Africa, Singles. Mother Moves, House Approves. © Temiloluwa Johnson. Participants at “Heavenly Bodies,” an underground drag ballroom event during Lagos Pride, celebrate the “mother of the year” winner. Lagos, Nigeria, 21 June 2024.
Winner, Africa, Singles. Tamale Safalu, © Marijn Fidder. Despite losing his leg after a terrible motorcycle accident in 2020, Tamale Safalu remained committed to competitive bodybuilding, becoming the first disabled athlete in Uganda to compete against able-bodied athletes. His strength and determination in the face of adversity challenges stereotypes and serves as an inspiration to people from all walks of life. “By competing as a bodybuilder on stage, I want to encourage other people with disabilities to recognize their own talents and never put their heads down,” says Tamale.
Winner, Africa, Singles. Tamale Safalu, © Marijn Fidder. Despite losing his leg after a terrible motorcycle accident in 2020, Tamale Safalu remained committed to competitive bodybuilding, becoming the first disabled athlete in Uganda to compete against able-bodied athletes. His strength and determination in the face of adversity challenges stereotypes and serves as an inspiration to people from all walks of life. “By competing as a bodybuilder on stage, I want to encourage other people with disabilities to recognize their own talents and never put their heads down,” says Tamale.
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