Last month, representatives from Rai travelled to Geneva to meet with the EBU’s Eurovision Reference Group. Following the meeting, Italian Head of Delegation Simona Martorelli stated that the first task ahead was to select a host city. This week, the bidding process was officially launched, with the publication of the criteria for eligible host cities. Following Turin’s bid, Pesaro has become the second city to confirm the submission of their bid.
Matteo Ricci, the Mayor of Pesaro, has announced via his Facebook page that the city have submitted their bid to host next year’s Eurovision to Rai.
We fall within all the parameters required for participation. Among these ‘the presence of an international airport no more than an hour and thirty minutes away, a hotel offer of over 2000 rooms in areas adjacent to the event and infrastructure’, the Vitrifrigo Arena, which meets the necessary criteria.
The palas is one of the largest in Italy, among the most beautiful and evocative settings for hosting concerts and shows.
Pesaro is a UNESCO City of Music, it boasts an important musical tradition in continuous evolution and dynamic cultural life that has constantly favored a climate of experimentation and dialogue between all the arts.
Matteo Ricci, The Mayor of Pesaro
The city’s proposed venue is the Vitrifrigo Arena, the third-largest indoor arena in Italy, which has a capacity of up to 13,000 people for concerts. As it stands, the venue doesn’t have any bookings listed after March 4 2022.
Twelve cities showing interest
Måneskin won the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 with “Zitti E Buoni”, taking us to Italy for the first time since 1991. Shortly after their victory, a number of cities have announced their interest in bidding to host the 2022 contest. By our estimations, Turin is currently a frontrunner, and is seeing support from local politicians, who have officially supported the bid.
So far we’ve heard from the following cities (*confirmed to have submitted a bid):
- Bari
- Bologna
- Florence
- Milan
- Naples
- Pesaro*
- San Remo
- Reggio Emilia
- Rimini
- Rome
- Turin*
- Verona
However, with the publication of the infrastructure and resource requirements for prospective host cities, a few of the cities above will be ineligible.
We will report as the bidding process continues!
Which city would you like to see host Eurovision 2022? Let us know! Be sure to stay updated by following @ESCXTRA on Twitter, @escxtra on Instagram and liking our Facebook page for the latest updates! Also, be sure to follow us on Spotify and YouTube to see our reactions to the news in the run up to the 2022 national final season!
