LEGAL TERMS – 2026 WORLD CUP SPECIAL PHOTO CONTEST

1. What are the requirements to participate?

 

Send us a photo in which you appear during the GENERALI Málaga Marathon 2025 in PNG or JPG format.

Follow the @maratonmalaga account on Instagram.

2. How many countries/categories will there be?

There will be 9 participating countries, ordered by number of registered runners in the GENERALI Málaga Marathon 2025, plus an additional category so that all countries are represented.

Spain

United Kingdom

Netherlands

France

Belgium

Ireland

Italy

Poland

Morroco

Rest of the World

If more than 10 photos are received per country/category, the organization will select which 10 photos enter the contest based on the following criteria:

• Race spirit — Images that reflect the energy, emotion, and atmosphere of the GENERALI Málaga Marathon: effort, joy, achievement, or camaraderie.
• Participant presence — The person submitting the photo must appear clearly and recognizably, showing their real experience in the race. They may appear with others; this is not a limitation.
• Visual quality — Composition, sharpness, lighting, and framing that allow the scene to be appreciated, without needing to be a professional photo.
• Event context — The image must clearly identify that it belongs to the GENERALI Málaga Marathon: bib, medal, urban environment, spectators, finish line, etc.
• Originality and authenticity — Photos offering a unique, spontaneous, or emotional point of view, avoiding overly staged or artificial content.

3. When and how can I submit the photo?

 

By email to info@generalimaratonmalaga.com.

Photos submitted through any other channel will not be considered.

Deadline: Friday, June 5 at 23:59.

The email must include:

SUBJECT: Contest + Country

In the body of the message:

Full name

Instagram username

Province, nationality

Example: 

SUBJECT: Contest Spain

José García

@josegarcia

Málaga, Spain

Emails that do not include this subject line and information will not be part of the contest.

\* Only one photo per participant will be accepted. If more than one is sent, the organization will choose the one it deems appropriate.

\* Photos will be adapted to 1080×1350 px format.

\* Photos with watermarks will not be accepted.

\* Edited or manipulated images will not be accepted; the photo must be original.

\* You may appear or not appear in the photo. If you do not appear physically, the image must include something representative of the race: medal, bib, or T-shirt.

4. How will the contest work?

First round: selection of each country’s representative 

The 10 selected photos from each country/category will take part in the contest, which will be held entirely on the @maratonmalaga Instagram account. Each photo will be assigned a number. Users will vote for the best photo from each country. Only one vote per user will be counted.

Second round: final 

The 10 winning photos (one per country/category) will compete to become the winning photo of the 2026 World Cup Special Photo Contest, held entirely on @maratonmalaga. Each photo will be assigned a number. Users will vote for the best photo. Only one vote per user will be counted.

5. When will voting take place?

Voting begins on June 11 and will run during the 2026 Football World Cup.

6. How are votes counted?

Using a web application, all comments from the post are exported to a Word document. Once all votes are collected, the counting process follows these steps:

Extraction and Initial Filtering: 

All comments are collected in a text file or spreadsheet.

The frequency of each number is counted to determine which is most mentioned.

Identification of “Invalid Votes”: 

Repeated votes by the same user: duplicates are removed when the same number is mentioned more than once.

Unintentional mentions: the context of the number is analyzed (e.g., if it appears inside a word, username, hashtag, or as part of another number like “21K”).

Only isolated numbers or those accompanied by an explicit voting intention (e.g., “I vote for 3”) will be considered valid.

Final Result Calculation: 

Once valid votes are defined, the most-voted number will be determined.

7. What are the prizes?

The winner of each country/category will receive a race bib for either the GENERALI Málaga Marathon 2026 or the Estepona Marathon 2026. If already registered, the prize will be a bib for the 2027 edition.

The overall winner of the 2026 World Cup Special Photo Contest will also receive VIP access at the GENERALI Málaga Marathon 2026.

8. Changes and Acceptance of Legal Terms

The organization reserves the right to modify or expand these Legal Terms, provided that participants’ rights are not harmed. Participation in the contest implies full acceptance of these Legal Terms. Participation also implies acceptance of Instagram’s rules, as the contest is conducted through this platform.