And while we are mere days away from the announcement of the Eurovision 2023 host city, the first details about the proposed scheduled events came to light. In particular, Liverpoolecho reveals exclusive details of how Liverpool intends to organise the Competition, should it be selected.
We are at the final homestretch of the selection process for the city that is going to host Eurovision Song Contest 2023. Despite announcing yesterday that only Glasgow and Liverpool remain at the course of claiming, it seems that for the bookmakers there is an absolute favourite!
According to the bookmakers, Glasgow has 64% chance to host the contest, while Liverpool concentrates the remaining 36%.
It should also be pointed out that the variability of the odds was recorded mostly the last days, before BBC’s announcement regarding the predominant cities.
Specifically, as shown at the panel above (screenshot that was taken yesterday), while Glasgow remained for long as the absolute favourite for the bookmakers, Liverpool managed to make an outstading leap in odds. However, this dynamic was not preserved after the BBC announcement, with Glasgow retaking it’s edge overnight.
Will the bookmakers be proven right or Liverpool is going to make a surprise? Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun for all the details!
We have already reported that the decision about the Host City Eurovision 2023 will be announced in the Fall. What we didn’t know is how lengthy and elaborative BBC’s process really is. A recent discussion, however, between Liverpool Echo and Cllr Harry Doyle (a Liverpool city official) has shed some light into the procedure and give us a full picture of the BBC’s roadmap.
According to Liverpool Echo, the seven shortlisted cities must now provide BBC with their complete bids until September the 8th.
After an initial examination of the submitted bids, BBC will pay a visit to all the aspirant host cities (during September), in order to inspect the arenas and cities’ infrastructure.
Following the local inspection, BBC will once again deliberate, together with EBU, having this time all the necessary information to make the best choice. As a Liverpool city official maintains the final decision concerning the Eurovision 2023 Host City will be made public in late September or early October.
Stay tuned for all the updates regarding Eurovision 2023 and the Host City bid race!
We have previously highlighted the great interest shown by cities across UK to host the ESC. And while we await BBC’s announcement of the shortlist, on August 12, we still have two cities that enter the Host City bid race, Liverpool and Belfast. Liverpool submitted an official bid to host ESC, and the city of Belfast, the capital city of Northern Ireland, seems to be planning to submit an official bid soon.
Liverpool City Council announced today that it has submitted its bid to host the ESC 2023, ahead of the BBC’s share of the shortlist this Friday. Liverpool was among the first cities to express interest in hosting the event, when it was first announced that the EBU and the BBC were discussing the scenario of hosting Eurovision in the UK.
The city is world famous as the birthplace of the Beatles, as well as for its international music events such as “Africa Oyé”, “Liverpool International Music Festival” and “Sound City”. The city has a population of around half a million, and it is known for its iconic music venues and cultural events. It is also well connected to the world with its international airport (Liverpool John Lennon Airport).
Assistant Mayor and Councilor for Culture and Economy, Harry Doyle, said (translated):
We are excited to have submitted a bid for Liverpool to host Eurovision 2023.
Making a major event like this possible in such a short timeframe is complicated and is going to need some careful and creative planning, but we think Liverpool would be the perfect stage to celebrate this unique Eurovision.
We look forward to finding out if we have been successful in getting through to the next stage of the process.
We have already reported the interest in organizing the Competition in the capital of N. Ireland, and the support of this initiative by previous Eurovision winners. Belfast City Council has confirmed that the city is indeed interested in hosting the event, with the final decision expected to be made tomorrow, August 10.
The announcement of the Municipal Council is as follows:
An initial expression of interest for Belfast to host the Eurovision event has been submitted and is now being considered by event organisers.
If shortlisted, the next step would be to submit a full event proposal, outlining how Belfast would meet the detailed requirements to become a host city.
This will be a decision for elected members and will be considered by the council’s City Growth and Regeneration Committee at its next meeting on Wednesday 10 August.
What’s your take on the Host City bid race? Could Liverpool or Belfast host the 67th Eurovision Song Contest?
We have already reported the flurry of excitement across UK, and among cities willing to host the 67th Eurovision Song Contest. And while we await the announcement of the shortlist on August 12, the developments on this front are still coming through, with Newcastle confirming the submission of an official bid, and Derry clarifying that it is no longer interested in hosting the event.
According to a recent article, Derry, the second most populous city in N. Ireland, appears to have changed its mind and will not proceed with an official bid to host the Competition in the city, despite its initial interest. A spokesperson for Derry City Council said:
Following the resolution at June’s Council meeting “that Council Officers investigate the feasibility of submitting a bid to host the 2023 Eurovision Final”, Council has advised its elected members that the hosting criteria has been reviewed.
The Council area is unable to fulfill a number of the essential minimum criteria in relation to the provision of a suitable venue and supporting accommodation infrastructure. On that basis, it was recommended that a Stage 1 bid is not submitted.
The formal bid was submitted by the Newcastle Gateshead Initiative (NGI) on behalf of Newcastle City Council. Confirming the Council’s plans, NGI Director, Ian Thomas, said:
This is a once in a generation opportunity to welcome a huge number of international visitors, performers and media to the North East of England and to showcase our world- class culture, rich heritage and vibrant region to the world.
Our bid is a region-wide effort with support from our local authorities, and public and private sector partners from across the North East as we recognise the enormity of this opportunity.
The potential impact of Newcastle hosting Eurovision 2023 is phenomenal. Eurovision will play a significant role in rejuvenating and sustaining our visitor economy, supporting our businesses and creating an even better place for our residents.
Addressing the city’s success at hosting other large scale events, he added:
We’ve seen other large events such as the European Professional Rugby Club finals attract 95,000 fans to the region which contributed £24m to our visitor economy in 2019, and World Transplant Games also in 2019 brought in attendees from over 50 countries which pushed hotel occupancy rates up by 13%, supporting the hospitality supply chain and helping to sustain jobs within the industry.
Eurovision will be on an even bigger scale, and we welcome this fantastic opportunity to bring this to the region.
Councillor Alex Hay of the Newcastle City Council, said:
“We are delighted to be bidding to host Eurovision 2023 on behalf of Ukraine and stand in solidarity with its people. We are collaborating with partners across the region to help make this a reality for Newcastle, to do Ukraine proud and to embody everything that Eurovision stands for.
We’re committed to making Newcastle a better place for our residents and visitors, and hosting Eurovision will be a crucial tool in achieving that.
It will not only showcase the city and its incredible people on a global stage, but it will have a tangible social and economic impact in bringing financial investment into the city, helping change perceptions of the North East, and build a lasting legacy for our city.
We are a certified City of Sanctuary, which strengthens our message that everyone is welcome here. Music is a big part of our heritage and it’s time for us to write a new verse in that history.
We are Newcastle, we are a safe city, famous for our Geordie welcome, we stand united with Ukraine – and we are the perfect host for Eurovision 2023.
Would Newcastle be a good host for the 67th Eurovision Song Contest? Stay tuned for any updates!
Political upheaval emerges in the United Kingdom after the resignation of the Prime Minister of United Kingdom, Boris Johnson, from the leadership of the ruling Conservative Party. The latter, succumbing to the pressures caused by the resignations of leading government officials in the previous days, declared that despite his resignation from the leadership of the party, he will remain in the prime minister’s position, until the upcoming elections within the Conservative Party.
Could this new development affect the host city bid race for the 67th Eurovision Song Contest? Could it also possibly affect the UK and Ukraine cooperation in co-hosting the Competition?
The history of a predetermined course
As it was previously reported, according to an announcement issued by the EBU, the latter is in negotiations with the BBC, so that the Competition can be (co)organised (jointly with Ukraine) within the UK. Despite the disapproval that have been officially expressed by the Ukrainian Minister of Culture, the decision appears to be final, with the debate now turning to the choice of the city, within the UK, which will host the event.
As we noted in our previous article, so far at least 15 cities have expressed their interest in hosting the Competition (in alphabetical order):
A lot of digital ink has been spilled in relation to which of them is the most suitable to undertake this great challenge, always in view of the requirements established (!) by the EBU, which include inter alia:
The video below, in which Jon Ola Sand, Executive Supervisor of ESC until 2020, breaks down the process and the factors that are considered in the host city bid.
Glasgow as the preferred choice
Out of the cities that have expressed interest, several of them meet the aforementioned criteria, with the participation of Glasgow, however, being rumoured, as the prevalent choice. Glasgow, the most populous city in Scotland and the third most populous in the entire United Kingdom, seems like an ideal choice. The 14,300-capacity OVO Hydro Arena (which the Scottish First Minister seems to suggest as the best choice in her tweet) is in a great location, being just an eight-minute walk from BBC Scotland (the BBC’s Scottish branch). In addition, a conference center is located just near the OVO Hydro Arena, which could be utilised as a press center. More information on the scenario of Glasgow’s selection as a host city can be found here.
Right to Left: the OVO Hydro Arena, and the SEC Armadillo (auditorium). A third venue known as SEC Centre (not shown on the picture), together with OVO Hydro Arena and SEC Armadillo make up the Scottish Event Campus.
The resounding message of the Welsh Parliament
In a recent development, beyond Scotland, Wales (with Cardiff being the leading candidate host city), appears to also be a strong competitor. Specifically, on July 29, the Plenary Session of the Welsh Assembly (Senedd), after expressing its regret for Ukraine’s inability to organise the Competition, officially called on the Welsh Government to take the matter of the organisation of ESC on Welsh soil more seriously, and to engage EBU and BBC in discussions towards this direction.
During the session, the minutes of which can be found here, it was pointed out that Wales has never hosted the Contest, and the possibility of Eurovision being held in Wales would bring a large amount of tourism to boost the country’s economy. Surprisingly, another matter that was raised during the session, is the Conservative party’s 2021 call for Wales to participate in the contest separate from the UK, which cannot happen as long as the BBC holds broadcasting rights or Wales remains as part of the UK.
Although the prospect of hosting the ESC at the 74,500-seat Cardiff Principality Venue sounds extremely interesting, as this would result in the largest on-site audience to date, significant concerns have also been expressed as to whether Cardiff (or any other city in the Wales) could meet the conditions set by the EBU, and more specifically whether it could accommodate such a number of visitors, given the insufficient availability of accommodation within the city.
Political factors that will potentially influence the choice
It can be assumed that the 67th ESC will not be hosted on English soil, and the political instability that has emerged in the country, in light of the resignation of Boris Johnson, plays a certain role in this outcome (although impossible to assess the exact degree). Despite the fact that the resignation of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom inevitably affects all the constituent countries of the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland), the local governments in the latter three tend de facto to significantly facilitate the absorption of any political shocks caused therein.
Furthermore, with Northern Ireland currently being a hot potato for United Kingdom, the Scottish and Welsh bids seem to be the most likely host cities. Of course, one should not fail to take into account another factor, which rather tilts the tide towards Glasgow’s bid, namely the pro-European approach adopted by the Scottish Government in recent years. The latter’s outlook, coupled with its repeated attempts to differentiate itself from the government of Boris Johnson, especially in everything that has to do with Brexit and the relevant agreement signed between the European Union and the United Kingdom, has led Scotland to be portrayed in very good light within Europe.
UK-Ukraine relationship with a view to a joint event
A final parameter worth talking about is the close relationship between the United Kingdom and Ukraine. Admittedly, UK is one of the most important allies of Ukraine today, with Boris Johnson having, in fact, expressed a few weeks ago his opinion that EBU should reconsider organising the Competition in Ukraine, despite EBU’s relevant decision. Obviously, such a thing is not possible given the current circumstances.
What seems to be the most plausible scenario, according to a Downing Street representative, is for the ESC to be held in UK, in an event which will highlight the rich culture, tradition and creativity of Ukraine and in which, at the same time, emphasis will be given to the strong ties between the two countries.
It therefore follows that some degree of co-operation between Ukrainian and UK broadcasters will be required. In this context, Boris Johnson’s approach would certainly have ensured the two broadcasters’ harmonious cooperation (in the run-up to the event). Besides, in a poll conducted in Ukraine, Boris Johnson was found to be by far the most popular among foreign leaders, being only three percentage points below the Prime Minister of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky. Nevertheless, and despite the removal of the Ukrainians’ second favourite out of the picture, it doesn’t look like the parties will have to go back to the drawing board.
And this is because the change in the leadership of the Conservatives, with the consequent change in prime ministership, does not seem to affect the relations between the United Kingdom and Ukraine, nor the support of the former for the latter. As a recent poll has shown, the pro-Ukraine mandate is not a peculiar characteristic of Boris Johnson, but a commonplace in UK politics, spanning throughout the full spectrum of the British politics.
