On August 16 and 17, the most energetic and powerful youth event of the summer – the festival “Kopums / Mad Liepāja” – will take place in Liepāja. For two days, the festival will bring together young people and youth workers from all over Latvia, offering them the opportunity to visit more than 50 organisation stands, enjoy street culture, music, sports, discussions, and surprises. All of this will take place in the 2025 Youth Capital of Latvia – Liepāja – a city where stereotypes are broken and new opportunities are created.
This is the main event of the year within the “Liepāja – Youth Capital of Latvia 2025” program. Therefore, Liepāja invites municipalities across Latvia to celebrate International Youth Day together with their young people from August 11 to 15, and to gather in Liepāja over the weekend for a grand get-together.
The first day of the festival, August 16, will start at noon in Jūrmalas Park, where the “Avenue of Opportunities” will be open until 6:00 PM, featuring stands from 55 organisations. Visitors will be able to explore offers in various fields – from education, environment, and safety to volunteering and civic participation. Among the participants are: the State Fire and Rescue Service, State Police, National Armed Forces, Youth Guard Centre, State Revenue Service, Ministries of Education and Science, Transport, and Finance, the Agency for International Programs for Youth, Rīga Stradiņš University, “Klubs Māja”, youth centers from Liepāja and other municipalities, “Development Platform YOU+”, “Radi Vidi Pats”, “Papardes zieds”, “Center MARTA”, “Impact Hub” and many others.
A radio station called “Youth Break Stereotypes!” will also be active during the festival, broadcasting presentations and discussions from 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM, with a special focus on the development of the youth sector in Latvia and environmental sustainability. At 6:00 PM, a special activity will take place with youth capital ambassadors, inviting participants to critically examine common stereotypes about young people and actively contribute to breaking them.
The festival will also feature the international UCI BMX Freestyle Championship and the Baltic Street Workout Cup. Throughout the day, there will be a “Graffiti Battle”, mini football, and various extreme sports demonstrations. From 2:00 PM to 5:30 PM, young artists will perform on the “Open Stage”.
In the evening of the first festival day, at 7:30 PM, the Youth Capital of Latvia 2026 will be officially announced on the main stage. This will be followed by an “Afterparty” featuring popular local musicians and bands. The evening will conclude at 11:00 PM with a DJ performance.
In the youth workers’ zone, there will be discussions, professional networking, and from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM, a special agility competition. The winner will earn the honorable title of “Youth Work Superchampion 2025”.
On August 17, the festival continues with a concert by young artists from the Liepāja Children and Youth Centre, creative activities, and a graffiti workshop in collaboration with “Smash Room”. From 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM, a young DJ contest will take place, competing for the title “Maddest DJ”. Throughout the day, teams will also have the opportunity to take part in the popular and exciting team sport game “Pārnesums”. The festival will end at 9:00 PM.
On the festival grounds, food vendors and free drinking water will be available. As part of the “Change(k)now” project, a reusable cup deposit system will be implemented to study and assess how such a system functions in a youth-targeted event, as well as to identify its benefits and necessary improvements.
The full program, list of organisations, and useful information are available at www.liepaja.lv, as well as on social media: @festivals.kopums and @madliepaja.
Entrance to the festival is free.
The festival is organised within the framework of the “Liepāja – Youth Capital of Latvia 2025” program, with state budget funding approved under the Youth Policy State Program for 2025–2027 by the Ministry of Education and Science, as well as funding from the Liepāja City Municipality and non-governmental organizations.