Serbia election results: what’s next for Wine Vision and Expo Belgrade 2027

“Thank you, see you next time!” That’s the message greeting visitors to the home page of Wine Vision by Open Balkan after the fifth edition, held October 10-12, 2026. The organization thanks exhibitors, buyers, visitors and partners, and says it’s already looking ahead to the next edition. The website, however, doesn’t specify when the 2027 fair will take place. Vinitaly, which took part in the event in partnership with the Italian Trade Agency, instead points to next year for a new edition of Wine Vision.

The uncertainty mainly concerns the Serbian political context. The parliamentary elections held on October 25 paved the way for a new majority led by the Students’ List. As of November 3, the new government had not yet taken office. Formation of the executive will begin shortly, following yesterday’s formal declaration of results.

Wine Vision 2026 took place shortly before the elections, in a climate shaped by the approaching vote. The Serbian government, then operating in a caretaker capacity, followed and supported the fair without making official appearances in the main pavilion, in compliance with electoral silence rules. The October 25 vote in Serbia opened a new chapter, with the incoming Students’ List majority now set to decide on the event’s future and on the Open Balkan project.

Wine Vision was launched in 2022 as part of Open Balkan, a regional initiative promoted by Serbia, North Macedonia and Albania. The three governments have sponsored the event since its first edition. The idea was to turn political and economic cooperation into concrete opportunities for producers, distributors and operators in wine, hospitality and tourism.

The 2022 opening was attended by the leaders of the three countries and Montenegrin premier Dritan Abazović. Montenegro, however, was not part of the group of three founding states. The first edition took place at the Belgrade Fair from September 1 to 4, 2022. Ahead of the opening, forecasts pointed to more than 350 exhibitors from 20 countries. Local reports later cited around 400 wineries and distilleries from 22 countries and more than 30,000 visitors over the four days.

From its debut, the fair paired promotion of the three countries’ output with a wine competition, trade meetings and a public program. Wine and gastronomy became tools of economic promotion for a project of regional integration among Balkan countries.

In 2023, the second edition marked a significant jump in scale. Belgrade Fair announced more than 600 exhibitors from 28 countries: 260 Serbian, 74 from North Macedonia and 21 Albanian. The program included more than 3,000 B2B meetings booked through the fair’s platform, and total exhibition space was reported at over 44,000 square meters.

In 2024, the third edition brought together more than 650 exhibitors from 38 countries. The Serbian government’s report cited more than 2,000 B2B meetings and hundreds of agreements signed. The fair ran for three days and expanded its offering with Food Vision, an area dedicated to gastronomy, hospitality and food production.

In 2025, exhibitors fell to 535, from 34 countries. The event returned to a four-day format, running November 22 to 25. Government figures recorded 302 professional buyers from 41 countries and more than 1,500 B2B meetings. That November, Wine Vision earned UFI Approved Event status, granted following an independent audit of parameters including exhibition space, number of exhibitors and visitors.

The fifth edition, in 2026, brought exhibitor numbers back above 550, with participants from more than 30 countries. According to the Serbian government’s report, buyers and sellers came from 45 countries, B2B meetings topped 2,000, and the wine competition received 800 samples. The spirits competition drew 60 producers with 130 samples.

The rise in professional meetings compared with 1,500 in 2025 is a significant figure. Exhibitor numbers, however, remain below the more than 650 recorded in 2024. The sharpest decline came among Albanian producers, who were nearly absent from the 2026 edition (more than 20 wineries had taken part in 2023).

• Wine Vision 2026 opens in Belgrade: the “Vinitaly of the Balkans” grows
• Wine Vision by Open Balkan 2025: Vinitaly toasts Made in Italy record
• Italy’s presence grows at Wine Vision by Open Balkan 2024. Veronafiere Vinitaly: “The Balkans are a key market”
• Wine Vision by Open Balkan: Veronafiere in Belgrade with 50 wineries
• Prokupac Day 2026: Serbia’s twofold national miracle in red wine
• Cotarella heads to the Balkans: “I’ll make Serbia’s best wine”

From May 15 to August 15, 2027, Belgrade will host Expo 2027, a Specialized International Exhibition themed “Play for Humanity – Sport and Music for All.” The event will bring more than 140 international participants and millions of visitors (4 million are expected) to Serbia. In this context, wine and gastronomy will have a concrete presence, even though the Exhibition’s official theme remains sport and music.

Expo Belgrade 2027 identifies wine, traditional beverages, food products, gastronomy and tourism among the sectors with particular potential for cooperation. Already at Wine Vision Open Balkan 2026, the North Macedonia pavilion announced it had included wine in its project for Expo 2027. It will be one of seven national “rhythms,” alongside themes such as gastronomy, hospitality, nature and culture.

Italy will also take part in the Exhibition with its own pavilion, a project involving ICE. More broadly, wine’s presence on the Exhibition’s business platform and in some pavilions’ projects shows the sector is already included among promotion and trade cooperation opportunities—regardless of what happens with Wine Vision Open Balkan 2027.