A competition with high stakes! Thousands come together for traditional Spanish Castells event that sees crowds battle to build the highest human tower

Published: 18:43 EDT, 4 October 2026 | Updated: 21:03 EDT, 4 October 2026 Thousands have gathered at a Spanish arena to watch a near-century-old competition which sees teams battle to build the tallest human tower.Held every two years in an ancient bullfighting ring in Tarragona, the castells competition sees human tower groups from across Catalonia gather to face off.Some teams built towers of eight human storeys over the weekend, with the Marrecs de Salt team winning Saturday's competition in the Tarraco Arena.Teams of up to 500 men, women and children compete to build the tallest tower in the exhibition - which can be as many as ten levels tall.The highest and most complicated tower is dubbed the winner, with some reaching over 40ft tall in recent years.This year's edition was the competition's 30th outing since its first staging in 1932. Teams competed in Catalonia's Castells event, which challenged competitors to build the tallest human towers Held every two years, the competition has been staged 30 times since its inaugural outing in 1932. Pictured: the Castellers de Barcelona team forming a towerBut the Castellers de Barcelona tower collapsed into itself as the red-shirted participants tumbled over Castells are human towers, which can reach up to ten people tall or over 40ft high Thousands gathered at the Tarraco Arena, west of Barcelona, to witness the face off Towers rose out of the crowded arena floor as teams vied to produce the tallest castell Members of one pink-clad team, the Castellers Joves de Valls, collapsed as their tower failed on Sunday But others were more successful in the near-century-old Catalonian competition Members of Castellers Colla Vella wearing red uniforms banded together to form a human tower Crumbling towers are not uncommon in the competition, as the Castellers Joves de Valls showed A sea of blue-clad members of the Colla Castellera de Sant Pere i Sant Pau team begin to form a tower Members of the Castellers Joves de Valls reacted to another team's effort to form a tower this weekendOriginating at the end of the 18th century, castells can be spotted outside the competition in Catalonia's cities and town squares.In 1867 the choral tune Els Xiquets de Valls by Josep Anselm Clave said 'strength, balance, courage and good judgment' were the key ingredients for a successful tower.Generally teams work outside competitive spaces to push their own limits, with the Tarragona contest a rare exception.Castells need a minimum of six levels to be considered as such and each level has its own name.At the top is the crowner, who signals the tower's completion by raising their arm at the end of its construction.According to Europeana teams can have any number of members from 100 to 1,000.Teams are recognisable by their uniforms and are often named for their place of origin, for example Xiquets de Valls, Marrecs de Salt and Castellers de Barcelona.