The Eurovision Song Contest 2023 will be hosted in Liverpool, United Kingdom.
It has been revealed that Liverpool will host the next edition of the Eurovision Song Contest at the M&S Bank Arena. The decision comes after multiple rounds of shortlisting various UK cities, as the winners of the 2022 contest Ukraine were not able to host. Eurovision 2023 will be held on May 9, 11 and 13.
The final two cities on the shortlist were Glasgow and Liverpool, after the likes of Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield were not selected.
Eurovision Song Contest Executive Supervisor Martin Österdahl commented:
Liverpool is the ideal place to host the 67th Eurovision Song Contest on behalf of Ukraine.
The city is synonymous with music and Liverpool Arena exceeds all the requirements needed to stage a global event of this scale. We have been very impressed with the passion the city has shown in embracing the Contest and their inclusive ideas for placing last year’s winners, Ukraine, front and centre when thousands of fans visit next May.
This will be the first Eurovision Song Contest to be held in the UK in 25 years and, as we work with our Host Broadcaster, the BBC, to celebrate Ukraine’s victory, this unique production promises to be a very special one indeed.’
Liverpool is known globally as the birthplace of the Beatles, as well as music events such as Africa Oyé, Liverpool International Music Festival and Sound City. The city is home to just under 500,000 people and is known for its iconic music venues and cultural events. The city is connected to the world via Liverpool John Lennon Airport.
The Venue for Eurovision 2023
The M&S Bank Arena opened in 2008 and has a capacity for up to 10,600 people seated or 11,000 standing. The Arena has hosted a variety of events including the 2008 MTV Europe Music Awards, BBC Sports Personality of the Year and concerts of artists like Elton John, Rita Ora and Kylie Minogue.
What can we expect from Liverpool?
Earlier this week The Liverpool Echo revealed the first details of some of Liverpool’s plans for the city should they be successful in securing the bid to host the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest. These plans include a variety of activities and events to celebrate Ukrainian culture not just over Eurovision week, but in the weeks leading up to the contest.
- A celebration of Ukrainian fashion, with organisers working with Ukrainian designers to create outfits for volunteers and key delegates. This would celebrate traditional Ukrainian clothing items such as the vyshyvanka and vinok.
- A street art takeover across the city, which would see collaborations between Ukrainian and British artists.
- Creating a display of Ukrainian-painted eggs in the city centre, which would lead to cultural programmes in schools and local communities.
- A collaboration with the city of Kharkiv, a fellow UNESCO City of Music, and its orchestra.
- A tribute to Liverpool’s Eurovision legend Sonia, through a challenge, to find 20 cutouts of the singer across the city.
The 2023 contest will be the first contest since 1979 in which the winning nation was unable to host the following contest. It is the sixth occasion overall on which a different country has hosted after the original host nation was unable to, following the Netherlands in 1960, France in 1963, Monaco in 1972, Luxembourg in 1974, Israel in 1980 and Ukraine in 2023. The 2023 contest will also extend the United Kingdom’s record of hosting Eurovision to nine times.
Kalush Orchestra won the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 with the song “Stefania”. It was Ukraine’s third victory in the contest’s history.
Source: EBU | Image Source: Eurovision.tv