Dusseldorf will host the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest. The city tipped by esctoday.com to win the right to host the Eurovision Song Contest after Lena's victory in Oslo has indeed been selected after a long bid and selection process. The competition will take place in the Fortuna Dusseldorf arena, with a maximum capacity of 54,000 people although the capacity for the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest will be approximately 24,000 according to the EBU.
Dusseldorf will be the third city in Germany to host the competition. Frankfurt hosted the compettion in 1957, before the tradition that the winning country would host the competition the followingyear. Munich took the honour following Nicole's victory in 1982. 28 years later, and in 2011, Dusseldorf will host Europe's favourite tv show. The city was tipped by esctoday.com to have taken the lead in the race in September and the final decision was approved by the EBU's Eurovision Song Contest reference group earlier today.
Dusseldorf won the right to host the longest running music television competition ahead of Berlin, Hamburg and Hannover. The city is a well known event and exhibition destination with ample hotel and accomodation for delegations and fans.
Eurovision.tv reports:
NDR's Director General Lutz Marmor said: "Düsseldorf twelve points – North Rhine-Westphalia's capital city provides the best conditions for the Eurovision Song Contest. I congratulate Düsseldorf cordially – and just as cordially I thank the other three cities for going into the race enthusiastically with attractive concepts".
ARD Head of Entertainment Thomas Schreiber: "Düsseldorf scored mainly with the arena and its surroundings. More than 24,000 viewers can attend each of the two Semi-Finals, the Grand Final, and also the Dress Rehearsals. It was important to us that the most populous EU member state offers as many fans from Germany, but also from the neighboring countries, the opportunitiy to experience this event live. As part of the metropolitan area Rhein/Ruhr, Düsseldorf has a vast urban catchment reaching even into the Netherlands and Belgium."
No news is expected until the new year about ticket information, however as always, stay tuned to esctoday.com for all the latest news about the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest. In the mean time, enjoy this promotional video about Dusseldorf:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCpPcxc4FoM
