The BBC has today announced that the 67th Eurovision Song Contest will be held in Liverpool, with the Grand Final of the Contest to be on Saturday 13 May 2023.
Tim Davie, BBC Director-General:
“Congratulations to Liverpool. They will be an amazing host for the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest. Liverpool is such an exciting, warm and vibrant city. It’s the undisputed capital of pop music and is celebrating the 65th anniversary of its twinning with the Ukrainian city of Odesa. I know the people of Liverpool will welcome Europe – and the rest of the world – with open arms, and in partnership we will create something truly special.”
Following interest from 20 cities across all four Nations of the UK, seven cities were initially shortlisted to host the competition next year. It was announced last week that two cities remained in the running to host the Song Contest: Glasgow and Liverpool. Both cities provided incredibly strong bids, led by their respective local authorities and including community and stakeholder support from within their cities and beyond. Each city proposed to reflect Ukrainian culture and music in their own unique way.
A detailed assessment of the two cities has resulted the BBC and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) agreeing that Liverpool will be the host city for the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest.
The Beeb note that ‘Liverpool has a fantastic venue, a beautiful backdrop of a city with a rich history of music, and a cultural offer that puts Ukraine at the heart of next year’s Song Contest. The team at the Liverpool City Council and the Liverpool City Region will be fantastic partners for the BBC in delivering the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest.’
The BBC is also announcing that the date of the Grand Final of the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest will be Saturday 13 May at the Liverpool Arena. For audiences in the UK, for the first time, the two Semi-Finals on Tuesday, May 9 and Thursday, May 11 and the Grand Final will all be broadcast live on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
To coincide with the announcement of the host city, the EBU has released the official logo for the 2023 Song Contest, which contains the Ukrainian flag within the heart. The logo design reflects that although the competition will be held in the UK, it will be done on behalf of Ukraine, the winners of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest.
