Thousands of PlayStation users across the UK, US and Europe were left unable to sign in, launch digital games or access online services after a major PlayStation Network (PSN) outage on 24 July 2026.
Widespread disruption
Players flocked to social media platforms expressing frustration after being unable to sign in, access digital games or establish connections to online services as problem reports mounted.
Downdetector logged over 6,000 reported issues across the UK alone, with thousands of additional complaints registered in the US and other European nations, suggesting the disruption had reached global proportions.
Sony acknowledges issues
Despite the escalating volume of complaints, the PlayStation Network status page initially displayed no indication of difficulties. Yet around 3pm UK time, Sony amended its service status, acknowledging that all PlayStation Network services were encountering problems.
The company confirmed the outage impacted Account Management, Gaming and Social, PlayStation Video, PlayStation Store and PlayStation Direct.
Ongoing difficulties
While certain players subsequently reported regaining entry to their accounts and games, numerous others indicated ongoing difficulties, with consoles operating sluggishly or struggling to display the main menu.
Multiple users additionally stated they were prevented from launching digitally purchased games.
One frustrated player posted on X: "Turned on my PS5 only to wait several minutes just to get to the menu. Now looking it up, PSN seems to be down."
"I can't even launch my digital games either. Nice to see you're well prepared for an all digital future."
Another frustrated user posted: "Why's my PlayStation not loading any games and won't let me sign in? When I try to shut it off it takes 40 seconds or more stuck on the screen."
A third chimed in: "The PlayStation Network is currently down and guess what? Solo games without a disc aren't working."
Cause unknown
As yet, Sony has not disclosed the reason behind the outage, nor provided any indication of when full service will be restored.
