Every year, TAG DER CLUBKULTUR consists of two separate formats: the Culture Award and Festival Week. While the Culture Award celebrates outstanding contributions to club culture, Festival Week showcases the diversity of Berlin's club culture through a city-wide programme.

From 3-11 October 2026, Berlin will become a stage for club culture for the seventh time. Clubs, collectives, promoters, artists and other actors of Berlin's club culture community shape the programme with their own events, artistic formats and new ideas — from the community, for the community.

Whether it's a club night, concert, workshop, performance, exhibition, installation, talk, or something that doesn't fit into any category at all: Festival Week thrives on the plurality of your perspectives.

The Festival Week is organised and coordinated by Clubcommission Berlin e. V. as part of the TAG DER CLUBKULTUR project. The project is funded by Musicboard Berlin and the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion.

Club culture emerges wherever people come together to create free spaces. It thrives on self-initiative, solidarity and the courage to do things differently. Social developments often become visible in club culture earlier than anywhere else. With this year's motto "Stay Core", we want to collectively explore and celebrate this progressive force of club culture.

Club culture spaces are increasingly under pressure: rising costs, shrinking free spaces, political polarisation and growing commercialisation are posing new challenges for Berlin's club culture. This makes the question all the more urgent: What is the core?

With the festival theme STAY CORE, TAG DER CLUBKULTUR invites us to make exactly this core visible. Not as a nostalgic look back, but as a starting point for the future. What values carry our scene? How do we remain open, solidary and experimental? How do we create spaces where cultural diversity, artistic risk and solidary action remain possible?

We are looking for events that show what club culture is at its heart, and formats that strengthen and reimagine the core of Berlin's club culture. We look forward to diverse interpretations of the theme "Stay Core".a

Berlin's club culture sets cultural, artistic and social impulses far beyond the city's borders. The festival week makes this diversity visible and creates space for exchange, networking and shared public presence, as well as for political communication around club culture.

In 2026, a particular focus will again be placed on the visibility of participating practitioners. All participating promoters will be promoted and editorially accompanied with their programme highlights across TAG DER CLUBKULTUR's communications channels and through media partners. Where possible, photo and video teams will document selected events. In addition, Clubcommission Berlin will support networking and, where possible, with finding suitable venues.

On 3 October 2026, the festival week will be opened with a public opening event. Together we want to once again send a strong signal for the cultural significance of Berlin's club culture.

Festival Week is open to all clubs, collectives, promoters and other members of Berlin's club culture community who want to organise their own event in Berlin during Festival Week.

Taking part in Festival Week is completely independent of applying for the TAG DER CLUBKULTUR Culture Award. You're welcome to participate in Festival Week without applying for the award.

We welcome participants from all musical genres and artistic practices within Berlin's club culture — from electronic music, hip-hop, jazz, rock and experimental music to interdisciplinary, performative and discursive formats. Club culture grows through exchange across many disciplines. That's why we also welcome submissions from people working in related artistic, cultural or social fields whose practice has a connection to Berlin's club culture.

Multiple submissions and collaborative projects are explicitly encouraged.

The entire spectrum of Berlin’s club culture is intended to be part of TAG DER CLUBKULTUR: whether it’s a club night, concert, performance, installation, open-air event, exhibition, discussion, or workshop; whether during the day or at night; whether in clubs, bars, concert venues, studios, community spaces, theaters, radio stations, cabarets, temporary spaces, or movie theaters.

In principle, you are free to design and organize your events as you see fit, as long as they have a clear connection to Berlin’s club culture. All event formats that represent and strengthen Berlin’s local, contemporary (club) cultural scene can be part of the TAG DER CLUBKULTUR festival week. Apart from the festival week’s theme, “STAY CORE”—which participating organizers can interpret in their own unique ways—there are no thematic requirements and no restrictions to specific formats. The events should take place during the festival week (October 3–11, 2026). If you’d like to kick off your event as early as the evening of October 2, that’s also possible.

Step 1 – Important Information & Developing Your Event Idea

Before filling out the form, read through the Open Call and the FAQs for Festival Week, and develop your event idea

Step 2 – Submit Your Event Idea

Submit your event between July 13 and August 9, 2026, using the online form at tagderclubkultur.berlin. 

This allows us to review your event idea and evaluate it against the program criteria. We place great importance on the connection to club culture, as well as to this year’s Festival Week theme, and alignment with the values of TAG DER CLUBKULTUR.

Step 3 – Final Confirmation and Communication

We review each event as soon as possible after it is submitted. We will then inform you—no later than August 17, 2026—about the inclusion of your event in the official program of the TAG DER CLUBKULTUR festival week, as well as details regarding the joint communication campaign.

You will then have the opportunity to finalize your announcement texts, details on program items and lineups, and, if applicable, the venue.

For a complete submission, we need the following information in the online form:

• Name of the club, collective, or the person/organization hosting the event
• Contact person and contact information
• Title and format of the event
• Brief description of the event & how it relates to the festival theme
• Date, time, and venue
• Admission details (free, solidarity fee, or ticket price)
• Links to your social media channels (optional)

We will contact you separately at a later date to request the final promotional texts and images for the festival website and the official communication campaign. You will then have the opportunity to submit changes and final materials by the editorial deadline on August 30, 2026.

The scope, format, and framework of your event—as well as how you relate to the festival theme—are up to you and should be rooted in your own unique club culture practices. We welcome new formats, unconventional approaches, and collaborations.

To participate in the festival week, your event must have a connection to club culture, align with the Clubcommission’s mission statement, and take place during the festival period from October 3 to 11, 2026. Events that begin on the evening of October 2, 2026, will also be considered.

Events or content that are discriminatory, misanthropic, glorify violence, or are anti-constitutional, or that contradict the core values of the Clubcommission Berlin, may be excluded from participation.

The festival week stands for a diverse, supportive, and non-discriminatory club culture.

We welcome events that promote openness, respect, and a sense of community. Events or content that are discriminatory, misanthropic, glorify violence, or are anti-constitutional—or that contradict the core values of the Clubcommission Berlin—may be excluded from participation (see Clubcommission’s mission statement).

No.

The festival week and the TAG DER CLUBKULTUR Culture Award are two separate components of the project, both of which aim to promote and highlight the full diversity of Berlin’s club culture. 

In parallel with the festival week, the TAG DER CLUBKULTUR Culture Award will be presented for the seventh time in 2026. Thirty-two Berlin clubs and collectives will be honored. The application period for the 2026 award has closed.

Participation in the festival week is possible regardless of whether you apply for the Culture Award and is expressly encouraged. At the same time, as part of their application, all applicants for the Culture Award develop an event concept as a creative portfolio piece, which will ideally become part of the festival week. All applicants for the Culture Award who wish to participate in the festival week.

You can participate exclusively in the festival week, exclusively in the Culture Award, or take part in both platforms.

Participation in the Festival Week is independent of an application for the Culture Prize. As part of their application, all applicants for the Culture Prize develop an event idea as a creative portfolio piece, which will ideally become part of the Festival Week. However, actual participation in the festival week is not a requirement for receiving the Culture Prize. 

If you indicated in your application for the Culture Prize that you also plan to participate in the festival week, we will contact you personally. You do not need to fill out the open call for the festival week.

By participating, you’ll become part of a citywide festival program that highlights the cultural significance and diversity of Berlin’s club culture. In doing so, we’re sending a cultural and political message during these politically challenging times. 

All participating events will be publicized through the communication channels of the TAG DER CLUBKULTUR festival week and—where possible—also promoted through press outreach and our partners.

Furthermore, the festival week provides a space for exchange, new collaborations, and shared visibility within Berlin’s club scene.

To participate in the festival week, your event must be related to club culture, align with the Club Commission’s mission statement, and take place during the festival period from October 3 to 11, 2026. Events that begin on the evening of October 2, 2026, will also be considered.

After reviewing all events, we will put together the festival program and get back to you.

You can submit your event in German or English.

Yes.

Multiple submissions, as well as collaborations with other clubs, collectives, or event organizers, are expressly welcome.

Yes.

If any information about your event changes, please let us know as soon as possible at info@tagderclubkultur.berlin.

Yes, all event ideas for the TAG DER CLUBKULTUR festival week must be submitted by August 9 using the form on the website. If you’re missing any information before the submission deadline, you can submit it later, along with any subsequent changes. The Club Commission does not have its own event spaces, but the Club Commission team will be happy to help you find a suitable venue for your event concept if needed. 

Yes, you can still make changes to your event even after you've submitted your entry. It's important that you let us know in advance and as soon as possible so that we can update our communications about the festival week in a timely manner.

You can offer free admission to your event or sell tickets in advance and at the door. Please make sure that, depending on the format, the admission prices for your event are set in a way that ensures financial accessibility for as many people as possible. You decide on your own door and admission policies, as well as your ticketing system, if needed. 

However, if the planned event cannot take place due to unforeseeable circumstances, please contact us.

One month before Festival Week, we’ll launch a high-profile, multi-dimensional communication campaign with various media partners—and you’ll be a part of it. All Festival Week organizers will be featured and promoted with their program highlights on all of Clubcommission’s communication channels, both leading up to and during Festival Week. 

If you wish, photographers commissioned by us will attend your event, and we ask that you also document your event with photos. 

Festival Week will kick off with a high-profile festival opening hosted by the Clubcommission on October 3, 2026. 

No.

Participation in the festival week is free of charge. At the same time, all participants are responsible for covering their own event costs. The Club Commission will support you with communication and promotion of the events, as well as with networking and organizational matters.

The responsibility for planning, organizing, and hosting the event lies with the respective organizers.

This includes, among other things, obtaining the necessary permits, ensuring safety, securing insurance, and complying with all applicable legal requirements.

The personal data provided as part of the submission will be processed solely for the purpose of organizing and carrying out the festival week.

By submitting the online form, you confirm that you have read this information regarding participation.

Feel free to email us at info@tagderclubkultur.berlin anytime.

Even if you need help with organizational issues, finding a suitable venue, or other challenges, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. While we may not be able to help directly in every case, we’re happy to assist you in finding the right people to contact or working together to develop solutions.