International Puzzle Day 2026 – sponsored by  Ravensburger

Celebrate International Puzzle Day with a special EJJ online competition and a new Ravensburger puzzle! 

We hope to have as many people as possible assembling the same 500 piece puzzle on the same day! How does it work? Ravensburger has kindly sponsored 500 puzzles, which have been wrapped as "mystery puzzles" and can not be opened until the competition starts. 

The puzzles can be purchased on this page and can be shipped globally. At the designated time participants attend an online video call and solve the image as fast as they can. 

There will be two video calls, with the official public reveal being in the latter, which will also be livestreamed on YouTube. An offline participation is also possible (more details below). Results of all the participants will be combined and published on our results-page. 

How much does it cost? Thanks to Ravenburger, this solo online competition costs only 15,00€ including the puzzle and the competition participation fee. The image is new and has not been used in any competitions. 3,00€ per puzzle will be donated to a charity. 

How to participate? 

There are three ways to participate in the event. This is a solo competition and the time limit is always 2 hours. 

Flex offline: at a time of your choosing before the official event. You film yourself opening the puzzle and completing the puzzle in real time. Here you can find our upload instructions for Youtube.

Flex online: you join the video call at 10:00 (CET) on the 29th of January 2026 and race other puzzlers. Your time is recorded through our timer website.

Live: you join the video call at 19:00 (CET) on the 29th of January 2026 and race other puzzlers. The video call is livestreamed on YouTube and accompanied by commentary from the hosts. The livestream is the public reveal of the image and will be discussed in detail. 

After the livestream pictures, videos and comments may be shared. No spoilers! Before the livestream on 29.01.26 the image needs to remain top secret by the flex participants and not be shared. We want everyone to enjoy the surprise and have a fair chance of a "first attempt". We hope to see as many countries as possible represented! 😍🧩

What are the prizes?

We will award gift vouchers for our online shop to the top three puzzlers at each Euro Jigsaw Jam. Recipients can redeem the gift vouchers to participate in future events or for puzzles of their choice.

First: 50€

Second: 40€

Third: 30€

Can I participate if I’m not European?

Yes, everyone is welcome to participate, even if they don’t have a European nationality or live in a European country. 

However, please consider the delivery times from Germany and shipping costs to your location (customs duties may apply), as well as the time zone of our competitions.

I’m not available at that time of the Live Event, can I participate offline? 

If you’re not available to participate in the Live at the organised time, please DO NOT order the mystery puzzle. However, you may order the puzzle for the Flex, which allows an offline participation, in addition to the online meeting.

You can participate by filming yourself solving the puzzle. In the video you must show the original puzzle in its giftwrap and still intact. Then you may unwrap the puzzle and remove any plastic wrap or stickers. You may look at the image for 30 seconds before starting your timer, opening the puzzle and starting assembly. The video must be at normal speed (no time lapses) and show your table, hands and all the pieces as you build.

The video must then be uploaded to a Youtube channel as an unlisted video.

For the purpose of the competition, you may only attempt once and your first attempt is the time that counts.

No spoilers will be tolerated. After completing the puzzle, no images or video may be shared of the puzzle until after the online event has taken place. Participants found sharing the details of the puzzle including images, video or title of puzzle before online competition will be disqualified! The Flex competition only works based on trust and goodwill.

I have the Flex mystery puzzle - can I solve it straight away?

If you choose to participate offline, you may solve the puzzle at any time. However, we recommend doing the puzzle as close to the competition date as possible to avoid slip ups, rather than doing the puzzle six weeks before. Additionally, the earlier you complete the puzzle, the longer you have to wait for the results and to talk about or share photos of the puzzle.

What language is used during the event?

The virtual meetings will be conducted in the English language.

How do we mee online?

We use Google Meet for the competition. You don't need to install anything, it works in any browser. You'll receive the link a few days prior via email.

Time zone: CET

We are in a time zone with Brussels. Please adjust your start time accordingly if you live in a different time zone.