Eurovision 2020: Maastricht prepares bid to host contest

by Sanjay (Sergio) Jiandani 3,313 views

A week today Duncan Laurence gave the Netherlands its fifth Eurovision victory in Tel Aviv,  a lot has happened since then. Circa eight Dutch cities have shown their interest in welcoming the Eurovision bandwagon next year when the competition travels to the Netherlands. Maastricht has started to prepare its bid and is all set to welcome the contest next year!

MECC Maastricht

Maastricht’s potential Eurovision venue the MECC has released a press release regarding its ambitions to host the 2020 Eurovision edition.

Maastricht and its premier venue MECC Maastricht are in the starting blocks, and even have the handbooks ready for hosting this international event in May 2020.

Maastricht’s location in the heart of Europe, at a mere stone’s throw away from Belgium and Germany, combined with the city’s historical background give it a distinct advantage as a potential location for the 65th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest.

The Treaty of Maastricht was signed on 7 February 1992 in Maastricht, serving to officially establish the European Union.

Ms. Annemarie Penn-te Strake (Mayor of Maastricht) says:

It goes without saying that as the most European city in the Netherlands, Maastricht is putting itself forward as a candidate to host the Song Contest. MECC Maastricht has repeatedly demonstrated its abilities as an excellent organiser of major international events.

Thanks to its renowned hospitality and location in the Meuse-Rhine Euregion, with Belgium and Germany literally just around the corner, Maastricht is the ideal city to represent the Netherlands and proudly welcome artists and fans from all over the world in 2020.

Mr. Rob van de Wiel (General Director of MECC Maastricht) says:

We have everything we need to facilitate a production like Eurovision, and Maastricht has sufficient lodging capacity and an excellent international reputation.

Maastricht is the perfect fit for the Eurovision Song Contest; after all, the city is located in the heart of Europe.

We’re only a few kilometres away from Germany and Belgium. I sincerely believe that the event will be held in our city for this very reason. I’m already even having dreams about it.

The Procedure

According to the EBU’s standard procedure, cities will have to submit a bid book soon in which they explain and substantiate their candidacy. The choice will then be up to the European and Netherlands’ national broadcasting organisations.

The most important part of the submission involves the event location. The venue must be able to accommodate an audience of at least 10,000, plus lodging for the delegations from the 42 participating countries and around 2,000 journalists.

AVROTROS, the Dutch broadcasting network responsible for the event organisation, has already prepared the manuals and plans – drawn up by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) umbrella organisation – for setting up the contest, the final of which is watched by 200 million television viewers worldwide.

Host City Bidding Process to open in June

AVROTROS, NOS, NPO and the EBU are expected to open the 2020 Eurovision host city application window in June in order to enable the potential host cities to officially submit their respective bids. Hereafter the 2020 ESC host broadcasters will evaluate and verify all the submitted bids, ultimately shortlisting them and presenting them to the EBU. A final decision on the 2020 Eurovision host city is expected to take place by late summer.

The EBU and AVROTROS are yet to determine the dates for Eurovision 2020.