Malaga Tech Games, the 'Olympics' of Tech Companies

The Málaga Tech Games is an event that brings together employees from startups and tech companies in Málaga for a competition that combines sports, games, and leisure activities. The goal is to promote team culture and networking within the local tech ecosystem. One of the main new features of this edition is the change of venue. The Málaga Tech Games will be held this weekend at the Los Olivos school.

For many participants, it is a true "Olympics among tech companies". According to Óscar Miras, one of the event organizers, "it is one of the events to which I am most fond."

Amanda Ledesma, a participant from the company Magnific, highlights the "camaraderie" that occurs during the games: "It's much more than a competition. Ultimately, from the organization, we seek to promote sportsmanship and camaraderie."

In turn, Raúl Rosso, communications manager at Uptodown, expresses the social objective of the event: "This shows the need for initiatives like this to promote synergies between companies beyond their purely corporate implications."

The initiative originated in November 2021 when Bernardo Quintero, founder of Virus Total and executive at Google, humorously proposed the idea of tech Olympics on X. Following that proposal, several companies from the sector gradually joined, leading to the development of the project.

The first edition of the Málaga Tech Games was held in 2022 with 400 participants from nine companies. Since then, the event has been steadily growing to its fifth edition, which gathers more than 1,000 attendees and 22 tech companies.

Among the participating companies are BeSoccer, Google, Oracle, Vodafone Innovation Hub, Ericsson, Uptodown, Magnific, RavenPack, The Workshop, SD Worx, and dayOne CaixaBank, among others. This year, new companies such as Ionik, QTech Games, and REWE Digital Group are also joining.

The event also includes a gift for attendees, such as a welcome pack that includes a team t-shirt, water bottle, and a reusable glass for the drink bar. In case of loss, the replacement of the glass will cost one euro, which will be donated to a charitable cause yet to be determined.

The organization will offer catering service included throughout the event, at no cost to participants. On Saturday, the menu will include chicken sandwiches, croquettes, and potatoes, as well as vegan options and those adapted for intolerances, while on Sunday, paella and migas will be served. Both days will also feature fruit, pastries, coffee, and beverages such as soft drinks, beer, summer wine, and water.

Disciplines

In the 2026 edition, the Málaga Tech Games will feature 13 sports and leisure modalities and are expected to have 1,200 participants.

Among the disciplines are sports such as chess, indoor soccer, 3x3 basketball, paddle tennis, swimming, volleyball, table tennis, and darts, as well as more recreational activities such as table football, video games, card games, and yoga. Many of these include mixed formats and competition systems with group stages, leagues, and playoffs.

The event also includes specific modalities with their own rules, such as the Functional Games or relay swimming, as well as video game competitions with titles like Super Smash Bros, Tekken, or Mario Kart. Each discipline has schedules, formats, and scoring systems adapted.