Measles in Europe: Tracking cases of one of the world's most contagious diseases in 2025

One of the world’s most contagious diseases is spreading in Europe.

While measles infections have slowed in recent months, cases continue to crop up in parts of the continent. Last year was the worst for measles in Europe and Central Asia since 1997, with more than 120,000 cases reported across the region.

So far this year, nearly 7,000 measles cases have been reported across the European Union, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein,** according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). That's compared with more than 35,000 in all of 2024.

Over the past year, many cases have been among unvaccinated children under the age of five, the ECDC says.

Measles is usually a mild or moderately severe illness, but in some cases it can lead to deadly complications. It’s extremely contagious, but vaccination is effective at keeping people from getting sick.

Here’s where cases are highest in 2025, according to ECDC data through the end of July.

Measles in Romania

The vast majority of the EU’s measles cases are in Romania, which has reported 4,093 infections as of late July. Three people have died.

The country’s years-long outbreak has been driven by anti-vaccine sentiment, conflicting health guidance, and a medical system struggling to keep up.

In 2023, just 62 per cent of the population was fully vaccinated against measles, far below the 95 per cent threshold needed to prevent outbreaks.

Measles in France

There have been 803 measles cases and two deaths so far this year in France, spurred in part by a "notable increase" in the number of measles cases brought into the country this year, the ECDC said.

In September, France's public health agency said cases have been slowly declining since May, and that most infected people have been unvaccinated.

In 2023, 93 per cent of people in France were fully vaccinated. But if there are pockets of unvaccinated people in a community, measles can easily take hold.

Measles in the Netherlands

The Netherlands reported 488 measles infections and one death in the first half of 2025. More than two dozen cases were among people who contracted measles in Morocco or Romania and then came into the Netherlands.

Dutch health authorities said there are "clusters" of measles infections, for example, at primary schools or childcare facilities, with most cases among children under the age of 10.

But they stressed there is no national measles outbreak as of mid-September.

At 81 per cent, the Netherlands has one of the lowest measles vaccination rates in the EU. Only Romania and Cyprus (80 per cent) had lower coverage levels.

Measles in Italy

In Italy, 414 measles infections have been recorded so far in 2025. Overall, in the year ending in late January, it’s had more cases than anywhere in the EU except Romania.

The country’s measles vaccination rate was 85 per cent in 2023, too low to stave off outbreaks.

Measles in Belgium

Belgium has recorded 376 measles cases so far in 2025, with cases exploding in May and then slowing down in June and July.

The country’s last major outbreak was in 2024, mostly among unvaccinated school children in Brussels, according to Belgian authorities.

Measles in Spain

Spain has had outbreaks in several parts of the country this year, resulting in 339 measles infections. No new cases were reported in July, indicating the spread appears to have tapered off.

Notably, 92 per cent of people in Spain were fully vaccinated against measles in 2023, landing the country near herd immunity.

In May, the Spanish Ministry of Health encouraged people to check their vaccination status amid the uptick in measles cases both worldwide and within Spain.

"The resumption of mobility after the pandemic has increased the risk of imported cases," the ministry said.

This story was updated on 12 September 2025 with the latest data.