Varna, Burgas, and Ruse were included in the 2024 European Cities of the Future ranking

Everything was ranked across five subcategories: economic potential; business friendliness; connectivity; human capital and lifestyle; and economic efficiency.

Several cities in Central and Eastern Europe have been featured in fDi Intelligence's flagship 2024 European Cities and Regions of the Future Index.

The Bulgarian capital Sofia ranked second in the top 10 in the large cities, economic efficiency category.

And the cities of Burgas, Ruse, Varna and Plovdiv appeared in the ranking of small regions with the greatest economic efficiency.

Frankfurt in Germany; Wroclaw in Poland; and Luxembourg City, the capital of the eponymous district, all rose in the rankings to top their categories: large cities, medium-sized cities, and small towns.

Meanwhile, London confirmed its leadership in the largest city category, and Barcelona emerged as the best city for its foreign direct investment strategy. Among large regions, the Paris region (Île-de-France), North Holland, and the Dublin region emerged victorious.

The study assessed 330 European cities, divided by population into five groups—large, large, medium, small, and microcities—as well as 141 European regions, divided into three groups—large, medium, and small. Thirty-eight local enterprise partnerships in the UK were also assessed.

The 2024 European Cities and Regions of the Future Index compiles surveys from European investment promotion agencies in a different category: the Foreign Direct Investment Strategy category.

Data shows that the UK capital is the best city in Europe for talent and lifestyle. It is one of the best-connected cities, offering the best business environment and the greatest economic potential of all major European cities. Amsterdam follows closely behind, with a similar combination of talent, connections, business environment, and economic potential, while Dublin ranked third, largely due to its economic prospects.
In the large city category, Frankfurt beat out its German counterpart Hamburg to win this year's ranking in its category, while Düsseldorf took third place.

In the medium-sized city category, Poland's Wroclaw made a statement by taking first place, ahead of Zurich – last year's winner – and Vilnius.

In the small cities category, Luxembourg topped the ranking, while Zug confirmed its leadership in the micro-cities category.

The Paris Region (Île-de-France) confirmed its dominance among major regions ahead of a crucial year. In just a few months, the region will host the 2024 Olympic Games, which will see the development of numerous new infrastructures that will further enhance its competitiveness. The West Midlands took second place, while North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany came in third.
In the medium-sized region category, North Holland again took first place, and the same applies to the Dublin region in the small region category.