Two of the most discussed possible venues for the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest have withdrawn their bids, says Dagens Nyheter. Both Friends Arena and Tele2 Arena, both located in Stockholm, cannot meet the requirements of hosting Eurovision 2016.
The main reason given for the withdrawal of the Tele2 Arena, the outright favourite to host 2016, seems to be the period of time in which the arena needs to be booked: four to six weeks seems to be too long for the football stadium. The only reason given for Friends Arena not hosting Eurovision is the fact that they simply do not want it.
That leaves the question where to go now? If you’re hoping for Stockholm, fear not, there still is one bid left from the Swedish capital: Globen. The legendary Melodifestivalen and Eurovision 2000 host venue may still get the gig in 2016. However, there will be some tough competition as also the Scandinavium in Göteborg has expressed an interest. The third contender we know of at the moment is the Saab Arena in Linköping, a venue which could host up to 11,500 people for concerts.
As was announced a few days after Måns Zelmerlöw won Eurovision 2015, Malmö will not be bidding along to host Eurovision 2016. The 2013 Eurovision host seems to be willing to give other cities a chance. If we follow SVT’s ‘rhythm’ of hosting, the next venue for them would be in Göteborg. They seem to alternate between Malmö, Stockholm and Göteborg. With Malmö hosting 1992 and 2013, Stockholm for 1975 and 2000, Göteborg is left with just 1985. Could this mean we’re heading for Göteborg? Or is SVT going to surprise us and bring us all to… Linköping?
