Compared to the Fortune 500, the Fortune 500 Europe has been slightly behind in elevating female CEOs. Europe’s largest companies by revenue are often older, legacy businesses with roots before WWII—or even as far back as 1366, for the oldest company on the list. Finance, energy, and motor vehicles and parts are the three largest sectors among the region’s big businesses.
This is the third year that Fortune has created a Fortune 500 ranking specifically for Europe. Between 2023 and 2024, women lost ground as CEOs of these companies—down from an initial 7% to 6.2%.
This year, at first glance, it looks as if female CEOs have made significant strides. Women run 38 companies out of 500, for a share of 7.6%. But that surge is to be short-lived. Four of the female CEOs among that cohort have already announced their impending exits; their successors are all men. Those are: GSK chief Emma Walmsley, a longtime global leader in pharma (who recently joined us at the Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit); Sophie Bellon, the second-generation chief of food and beverage giant Sodexo; Belén Garijo of Merck KGaA; and Ilham Kadri of Syensqo SA/NV. Plus, the Dutch utility GasTerra, led by Annie Krist, is winding down operations.
So, with those five female CEOs eventually gone, women will be back to running just 6.6% of the Fortune 500 Europe.
The top woman-led business on the Fortune 500 Europe remains Engie, the French energy company led by Catherine MacGregor. This year it ranks No. 37, compared to No. 31 in 2024 and No. 18 in 2023. The next-highest company led by a female CEO is Julie Sweet’s Accenture, which thanks to its Ireland HQ is included on this list. So women barely crack the top 50 among Fortune 500 Europe businesses.
Overall, Europe still lags significantly behind the U.S. on this metric. On the Fortune 500, women currently lead 10.4% of businesses. Earlier this week, I wrote about the departures of two female chiefs (who were both women of color). If the Fortune 500 continues to bleed female CEOs, Europe and the U.S. could meet in the middle. Instead, let’s hope it’s Europe that catches up.
Emma Hinchliffe
emma.hinchliffe@fortune.com
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