Between Cosplay and Charity: How FANCON Differs From the World's Pop Culture Festivals
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How FANCON competes with the world's pop culture festivals during wartime.
Pop culture festivals in Paris, London, or San Diego draw hundreds of thousands of visitors and set trends for the global entertainment industry. Ukraine's FANCON, meanwhile, is gradually closing the gap in program scale, attendance, and international presence.
DeTalks compares the Ukrainian festival to the world's best-known equivalents and looks at how it has developed during wartime.
DeTalks is the official media partner covering FANCON 2026. Look for exclusive content from the event on the media's Telegram channel and social media.
The Path to a European Format
FANCON organizers reported that the festival drew 36,153 visitors over two days in 2025. In 2026, the team expects to top 40,000 visitors and expand the event's footprint to 27,000 square meters.
For comparison, France's Japan Expo draws over 250,000 guests every year, and San Diego Comic-Con attracts over 130,000 people. London's MCM Comic Con remains Europe's largest recurring pop culture festival and hosts tens of thousands of visitors twice a year.
Still, the Ukrainian festival is gradually approaching that European format. In 2026, the program will feature events across seven themed stages, including a Ukrainian-language dubbing sector, a wrestling zone, and a space for independent video game developers. It will include cosplay shows, esports tournaments, publisher presentations, and more.
Celebrity Guests at Pop Culture Festivals
World festivals continue to draw actors. San Diego Comic-Con, in particular, is where Marvel, Disney, HBO, and Netflix unveil new projects featuring Hollywood stars.
D23 Expo builds its program around the Disney, Marvel, and Star Wars franchises, while MCM Comic Con invites actors from popular British and American series.
FANCON operates on a different scale, but it's already building an international presence. In 2025, the festival welcomed Sylvester McCoy, known for Doctor Who and The Hobbit, actor Mickey Lewis (Star Wars), and German cosplayer Maul Cosplay (Ben Bergmann).
In 2026, the lineup also includes American wrestler Patrick Clark Jr., writer Max Kidruk, director Alan Badoev, and other figures from Ukraine's creative industry.
Ukraine's Market Plays by Its Own Rules
At a time when world festivals function mainly as commercial platforms for the entertainment industry, Ukraine's market operates under different conditions.
FANCON CEO and co-founder Arkadii Medvediev notes that the festival has grown from a local gathering spot for the anime community into a large-scale event that brings together cosplay, comics, board games, esports, and wrestling.
“Today, it's a powerful platform for self-expression, making new connections, and growing Ukraine's diverse content and opportunities,” says Medvediev.
Organizers also combine the entertainment side with charity work. In 2025, the festival raised over 3.5 million hryvnias for Ukraine's Defense Forces and other charitable causes. In 2026, fundraising for the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade remains one of the event's core missions.
FANCON also accounts for wartime risks. Organizers have a plan of action for air raid alerts, and the event is held with security requirements in mind.
What Sets FANCON Apart From Its European Counterparts
FANCON 2026 has much in common with European pop culture festivals like London's MCM Comic Con and Paris's Japan Expo. All three events promise visitors cosplay shows, comics, manga, and other entertainment for fans of contemporary culture.
But one key difference is the context in which they take place. While MCM Comic Con and Japan Expo happen in peacetime, FANCON takes place during a full-scale war. Unlike most Western festivals, the Ukrainian event runs charity fundraisers to support the military, weaving volunteer initiatives directly into the festival program.
FANCON organizers also report growing community engagement. In 2025, the festival drew 900 Cosplay & Cover Dance Show participants, 125 Geek Bazaar vendors, 93 artists at the Artist Alley, 26 publishers, and 38 Ukrainian bloggers.
Pop culture festival programs across different regions of the world, meanwhile, place different emphases. European and Asian events, for instance, more often feature local creative communities and independent creators, while American conventions devote much of their focus to studio presentations and major media franchises.