February 28, 2025
The World Health Organization (WHO) today announced the recommendations for the viral composition of influenza vaccines for the 2025–2026 influenza season in the northern hemisphere. The announcement was made at an information session at the end of a 4-day meeting on the Composition of Influenza Virus Vaccines, a meeting that is held twice annually.
The WHO recommends that trivalent vaccines for use in the 2025–2026 northern hemisphere influenza season contain the following:
Egg-based vaccines
- an A/Victoria/4897/2022 (H1N1)pdm09-like virus
- an A/Croatia/10136RV/2023 (H3N2)-like virus
- a B/Austria/1359417/2021 (B/Victoria lineage)-like virus.
Cell culture-, recombinant protein- or nucleic acid-based vaccines
- an A/Wisconsin/67/2022 (H1N1)pdm09-like virus
- an A/District of Columbia/27/2023 (H3N2)-like virus
- a B/Austria/1359417/2021 (B/Victoria lineage)-like virus.
The recommendation for the B/Yamagata lineage component of quadrivalent influenza vaccines remains unchanged from previous recommendations:
- a B/Phuket/3073/2013 (B/Yamagata lineage)-like virus.