Claim: Spiel, often called the Essen Game Fair after the city where it is held, is an annual four-day boardgame trade fair which is also open to the public held in October at the Messe Essen exhibition centre in Essen, Germany (the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany), had increasing attendance numbers every year from 2011 up until 2019, however, it was cancelled in 2020.
Evidence: Internationale Spieltage SPIEL, often called the Essen Game Fair after the city where it is held, is an annual four-day boardgame trade fair which is also open to the public held in October (Thursday to the following Sunday) at the Messe Essen exhibition centre in Essen, Germany. Essen (German pronunciation: [ˈɛsn̩ (listen); Latin: Assindia) is the central and second largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. 2011 147 000 2012 149 000 2013 156 000 2014 158 000 2015 162 000 2016 174 000 2017 182 000 2018 190 000 2019 209 000 2020 Cancelled.