Charity speedrun marathons: Games Done Quick, ESA and UK events

How a speedrun marathon raises money

A marathon is a scheduled block of speedruns streamed back to back, often around the clock for a week. Runners play their chosen game live, usually with commentators on a sofa beside them, while a host reads out donations and the messages attached to them.

The European Speedrunner Assembly describes its main events as working much like a week-long television telethon: donations are encouraged with goals along the way. Common incentives include:

• Donation goals, such as unlocking an extra category if a target is reached.
• Bid wars, where viewers donate towards competing options, such as naming a character.
• Prizes donated by sponsors, which donors can win in sweepstakes at some events, according to GDQ's event information.

Every pound or dollar donated is tracked publicly. GDQ, for example, runs an open donation tracker showing totals, runs and bids for each event.

Behind the stream, a marathon is a large logistics operation: a published schedule with estimated run lengths, a tech team switching consoles and PCs between runs, and volunteers handling donations, prizes and the live chat. Schedules are estimates, so runs often start a little earlier or later than listed.

Games Done Quick: AGDQ, SGDQ and the smaller events

Games Done Quick describes itself as a series of charity video game marathons featuring high-level gameplay by speedrunners. Its About page says it has raised over $50 million for charity and averages more than 3,000 people at its events, including staff, volunteers and runners. It also states that it is the largest fundraising event globally for both Doctors Without Borders and the Prevent Cancer Foundation.

Its two flagship events, as shown on the GDQ donation tracker when checked on 3 November 2026:

• Awesome Games Done Quick (AGDQ) in January. AGDQ 2026 raised $2,478,270.78 for the Prevent Cancer Foundation across 141 runs.
• Summer Games Done Quick (SGDQ) in July. SGDQ 2026 raised $2,436,821.20 for Doctors Without Borders across 157 runs.

AGDQ 2027 is listed on the tracker for early January 2027, again benefiting the Prevent Cancer Foundation, and registration was open on GDQ's website at the time of checking.

Community events under the GDQ umbrella

GDQ also hosts smaller events run by communities within speedrunning. According to its website:

• Frame Fatales is a community of women and femmes in speedrunning. Its Flame Fatales 2026 event raised money for the Malala Fund; the tracker showed about $134,000 when checked.
• Black in a Flash is a community for Black speedrunners. Its Back to Black 2026 event raised $53,232 for Race Forward, per GDQ's announcement.
• Games Done Queer spotlights LGBTQIA+ members of the speedrunning community.
• GDQ Hotfix is a regular channel showcasing different speedrun communities, which also accepts run suggestions.

GDQ also ran Games Done Hitless in October 2026 with the Hitless community, benefiting Doctors Without Borders, and lists Games Done Quick Express 2026 in mid-November for World Central Kitchen.

The European Speedrunner Assembly in Malmö

The European Speedrunner Assembly (ESA) runs week-long main events in Malmö, Sweden. According to its website, ESA Summer 2026 took place from 31 July to 8 August at the Quality Hotel View, with a 24-hour main stream and a second stream on weekdays.

ESA's history page shows that the charity changes between events. Past beneficiaries include Alzheimerfonden, the Swedish Alzheimer's research foundation, and Save the Children. Recorded totals for its main events include $120,185.93 for Save the Children at ESA Summer 2022 and $104,205 for Alzheimerfonden at ESA Winter 2023. During 2020 and 2021 several ESA events ran with runners taking part from home.

ESA relies on volunteers, and its website says most volunteers receive a full discount on registration fees in return for joining the team.

Speedrun marathons in the UK: UKSG in Glasgow

The United Kingdom Speedrunner Gathering (UKSG) holds charity speedrun marathons in Glasgow. Its ticketing page says it was founded in 2017 and has raised over £75,000, and that while the event is UK-centric, people from around the world attend. Its website describes hosting in-person events three times a year.

Recent and upcoming dates listed by UKSG:

• UKSG Blue 2026 - 3 to 4 October 2026 at the Leonardo Royal Hotel, Glasgow, raising money for Crisis, the homelessness charity.
• UKSG RED 2027 - 5 to 7 February 2027, at the same hotel.

UKSG streams on Twitch and posts runs to YouTube, so it is the easiest marathon for UK viewers to watch at sociable hours. Its events also publish a code of conduct and submission rules on the UKSG website.

Because UKSG's events are shorter than week-long marathons, typically a weekend, they are a manageable first event for UK viewers who want to attend in person. Ticket details and conduct rules are published before each event.

Taking part as a runner, volunteer or viewer

Most marathons accept run submissions from the community. GDQ has a dedicated submissions site and publishes key dates in advance; for AGDQ 2027 its website listed a new-game submission window in November 2026 and a schedule release later that month. ESA and UKSG publish their own submission guides.

Organisers generally look for runs that are entertaining to watch, well practised and explained clearly to a general audience. Being accepted is competitive at the largest events.

Volunteers are central to all of these events, covering everything from tech to hosting. In-person attendance requires a ticket or badge, and GDQ's event rules cover conduct, photography, harassment and safety, with a dedicated safety contact.

Watching costs nothing. For tips on time zones, chat settings and catching up later, see our guide to watching esports and speedruns live.

Donating sensibly during a marathon

Marathons are designed to encourage donations, and the atmosphere can be persuasive. A few sensible points:

• Donate only through the official link shown on the event's own website or stream. Fake donation pages are a known scam pattern around popular streams.
• Check which charity benefits. It changes between events, and each event names it clearly.
• Watching is enough. Viewers are not expected to donate, and young viewers should never feel pressured to.
• Donation messages may be read aloud. Avoid putting personal details in them.

If a child wants to donate, it is a good opportunity to talk about the charity itself and agree an amount in advance. Our family guide to speedrunning covers other online-safety points.