The gala took place on 14 March at the Coliseu Micaelense in Ponta Delgada, Azores.

According to a statement sent to The Portugal News, the MED Festival received the Best Cultural Program award at the Iberian level and the Safe Event Award at the national level.

“MED surpassed the Spanish winner, the Murmura Festival, and became the music festival in the Iberian Peninsula with the best cultural program in 2025. This distinction is undoubtedly due to the fact that MED had Cape Verde as its “Guest Country,” bringing to Loulé a multidisciplinary program that included cinema, visual arts, crafts, and gastronomy, with a focus on Cape Verdean culture,” the statement reads.

Regarding the Safe Event award, “MED won the Portuguese award, while at the Iberian level the distinction went to the Spanish Festival Gigante. Safety is one of the factors MED Festival visitors refer as very relevant to participating in this great musical and cultural experience. Thanks to the attentive eye that the organisation has had in this area, and the work of a very committed team, it has been possible to set up a system that ensures the safety and rescue of people and property and support for emergency situations that occur on the premises.”

With the awarding of these two prizes, the MED Festival now has 12 Iberian Festival Awards.

Quoted in the press release, Telmo Pinto, Mayor of Loulé, states that “these victories are a reflection of the commitment of the Municipality's teams and all the collaborators who make this great event happen, but they are also recognition of the city's cultural affirmation strategy on the Iberian scene.”

Paulo Silva, director and programmer of MED, highlights the festival's reaffirmation on an international level, saying that "these awards are the culmination of another year in which we managed to hold a high-quality festival, deserving recognition from both the public and the jury, the specialised press, and the agents working in this industry. These distinctions place Loulé on the map of major international events related to world music, valuing not only the musical component but its entire cultural program."