Spain Tops ILGA-Europe's 2026 Rainbow Map at 89% as UK Stays 22nd on 44%

10 articles · Updated · diva-magazine.com · May 13

Spain scored 89% to lead ILGA-Europe’s 2026 Rainbow Map, which ranks 49 countries by LGBTQIA+ legal protections and inclusion.
Equal-treatment and non-discrimination laws drove Spain to the top, edging Malta at 88%, with Iceland, Belgium and Denmark also in the top 10.
The UK remained 22nd for a second straight year on 44%, a steep fall from first place in 2015 that critics linked to last year’s Supreme Court ruling and rising transphobia.
Russia and Azerbaijan ranked last at 2%, reflecting what ILGA-Europe described as attacks on LGBTQIA+ rights, including Russia’s branding of LGBTQIA+ groups as “extremist.”

As Spain tops Europe's LGBTQ+ rights index, why are violent attacks against its queer community reportedly on the rise?

Can Europe’s legal gains on LGBTQ+ rights survive a rising tide of far-right politics and shifting international support?