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. Last week, the bidding process was officially launched, with the publication of the criteria for eligible host cities. Following bids from Turin and Pesaro, Bologna has become the third city to confirm the submission of their bid.
According to Il Resto del Carlino, Bologna submitted their bid to host Eurovision 2022 this morning. The bid has been backed by Mayor Virginio Merola and the President of Emilia-Romagna Stefano Bonaccini. According to the details of the bid given, the provisional date for the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 is May 14.
The proposed venue is the Unipol Arena, which is located in Casalecchio di Reno, 12km from Bologna itself. The venue has a capacity of 20,000 for concerts, well above the minimum requirement. The city of Bologna also meets the other hosting requirements published last week by RAI and the EBU, including hotel capacity and proximity to an international airport.
However, while Bologna’s Unipol Arena has the perks of an airport nearby and a capacity of 20,000 people, it also has some awkward bookings in the calendar. Notably, Bologna on Ice is due to be hosted on April 25th and Eric Clapton is due to grace the stage on May 20th.
Twelve cities showing interest, three bids so far
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!
I think that the size of the venue is going to be the single most significant factor. Whether we are truly ‘post-pandemic’ or stil exercising social distancing precautions, the bigger the venue, the better. Bologna will host Eurovision 2022.