Eurovision 2025: Bern and Biel considering to submit a joint hosting bid

by Sanjay (Sergio) Jiandani 457 views

The majestic Swiss capital Bern and Nemo’s hometown Biel are considering to submit a joint bid to host the forthcoming 2025 Eurovision Song Contest in Switzerland.

The City of Biel, The City of Bern and Bernexpo have joined forces in order to study the possibility to submit a joint bid to host Eurovision 2025 next year. The three entities will be examining SRG’s Eurovision 2025 Hosting Bid Book along with all the requirements which need to be met in order to host the mega event. A final decision regarding the bid will be made by the end of June taking into account if the all the hosting requirement are viable and if Bern and Biel meet all the hosting requirements.

The high cost of hosting the competition, security and logistics will be all considered at the time of evaluating all factors.

Bern and Biel are aiming to host the forthcoming 2025 Eurovision Song Contest at a new stadium Bern Festhalle which is in currently under construction. The new venue is expected to open its doors in spring next year.

The City of Biel, The City of Bern and Bernexpo have released the following joint statement:

The municipal councils of the cities of Bern and Biel see hosting the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 in Nemo’s home region as a great opportunity. They have therefore decided, together with the Bernexpo Groupe, to examine in more detail an application to host the event in the new festival hall.

Around a month ago, Nemo won the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) with “The Code” and a rousing performance. The victory means that the next ESC will take place in Switzerland. Hosting the major event in Nemo’s home region is therefore a logical step and would be a great opportunity from the point of view of the cities of Bern and Biel.

The ESC offers the host city enormous exposure and would fit in well with the diverse, open and bilingual capital region of Bern and Biel. After initial preliminary clarifications and discussions, the municipal councils of Bern and Biel have therefore decided to examine in more detail the possibility of holding the event in the new festival hall on the basis of the list of requirements now available.

This is being done together with the Bern trade fair organizer Bernexpo. The Tissot Arena in Biel is the main focus for hosting further events related to the ESC.

The three partners will now jointly examine the detailed requirements dossier from the SRG in detail. In particular, it must be clarified whether the very high requirements for the venue can be met as part of an application. This involves issues such as security, logistics and the high costs that the host city will incur. The new festival hall meets the requirements of a modern event infrastructure and will be ready in time for the ESC to take place. 

A final decision as to whether an application will be submitted has not yet been made. This will be made within the application period until the end of June. The municipal councils of Bern and Biel as well as those responsible for the Bernexpo Groupe are convinced that the ESC would be a great celebration and a unique opportunity. They therefore hope that a joint application will be possible. At the same time, it is important to all those involved to only submit an application dossier if there is a real chance of being awarded the contract.

Source: City of Bern
Photo credit: Britannica/ Ayupov Evgeniy/Fotolia