The world welcomes 2025 with light shows, embraces and ice plunges

A couple kiss after the ball drops in New York’s Times Square. Picture: AP/Stefan Jeremiah

From Sydney to Mumbai to Nairobi, communities around the world have welcomed 2025 with spectacular light shows, embraces and ice plunges.

The New Year’s Eve ball dropped in soggy Times Square, where thousands of revellers stuck it out in heavy rain to celebrate the start of 2025 in New York City.