The pop culture event more ambitious which was held in Spain returns in October 2026 with 19,600 square meters of surface (almost double that of the previous edition) and a new director, Fernando Piquer. The esports man arrives to resolve the tightness and organizational problems that soured last year’s debut: Queues, chaos and 550 complaints.
When and where. San Diego Comic-Con Málaga will celebrate its second edition from October 1 to 4, 2026 at FYCMA, the Málaga Fair and Congress Palace. The announcement was made today at the Casa del Lector del Matadero in Madrid, with the presence of representatives from the Junta de Andalucía, the Malaga City Council and FYCMA. In it, specific new features have been put on the table, all with the clear objective of avoiding the drawbacks of the first edition.
More space. The most concrete change that the second edition announces is the expansion of the exhibition space. The surface will go from 10,800 square meters to 19,600, thanks to the incorporation of a second exterior pavilion of 8,800 square meters. As a direct consequence, the number of stands will double.
Even more striking is the jump in the Gaming Plaza: from 280 square meters to more than 2,000, an increase of more than 600% that will also give it an independent interior location. The role-playing area (named Ludic Plaza, “Sit&Play Area”) will also have a differentiated space distributed in two pavilions. These are two of the areas that in the first edition were clearly insufficient for the demand they generated. Artists’ Alley, which in 2025 welcomed figures such as Peach Momoko, Simon Bisley, Jorge Jiménez, Pepe Larraz and Claudio Castellini, will have a separate outdoor area in the Village. And the Meet the Artist space returns, which worked well in the first edition.
A year ago. The first edition, held in September 2025, showed that the brand has a traction in Spain. Three of the four days were sold out in less than 24 hours at 50 euros per day, when there was still not a single confirmed guest. When the names began to arrive, the first reviews pointed out that the event was aimed at the general public, not the fandom that gives the event its name.
Lots of people. Attendance figures are an indicator to be interpreted carefully. The organization speaks of 95,784 attendees; Malaga City Council published 120,000. That difference of 25,000 people has not been officially explained. What is documented is that Facua and OCU accumulated more than 550 consultations to file complaints, motivated by capacity limits, hours-long queues and space management that attendees described with bitter disappointment. In fact, an exclusive pre-sale of tickets has been announced, still undated, for those who attended last year: a way to compensate those who endured queues and chaos from the first edition.
New director, atypical profile. The change in management is the implicit recognition that something has failed. Fernando Piquer takes over, replacing Javier Barberá. His profile is striking: founder and CEO of Movistar Riders, one of the most recognized esports teams in Spain, with experience managing large-scale operations under media pressure. It doesn’t come from the world of comics, but it does come from coordinating massive events where logistics are as important as the poster. Piquer spoke today of “a new stage” and stressed that the objective is to “expand spaces and content to offer the best experience to fans.”
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