The European Space Agency (ESA) has signed the first contracts with launch service providers under the European Launcher Challenge, ESA announced in an article dated 27 August 2026.

ESA describes the challenge as an initiative to expand and diversify European launch services and thereby make Europe's access to space more robust. Under the programme, the agency becomes a customer of newly developed commercial launch services, which ESA says is intended to encourage competition in the European space sector.

The challenge was opened to proposals in March 2025, with the submission deadline later extended by two weeks. An archived ESA page on preselected challengers was last updated on 26 November 2025. Among the companies linked to the initiative on ESA's site are Isar Aerospace, Maiaspace, PLD Space and Rocket Factory Augsburg.