Glasgow shortlisted to host Eurovision

Glasgow has been shortlisted to host Eurovision 2023.

In August, it was announced that seven cities  - Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, and Sheffield - had been shortlisted as candidate host cities, but this has now been narrowed down to just Glasgow and Liverpool.

Following the announcement, the Scottish Government’s culture minister, Neil Gray, said: “We are delighted that Glasgow has made the final selection to host the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest.

“The Scottish Government will continue to engage with Glasgow Council as they progress their final bid.”

Ukraine won last year’s competition, and would normally be required to host Eurovision this year. However, the contest is set to be held in the UK due to security fears caused by Russia’s invasion. As the country that finished in second place, the UK has been selected as the host nation.

Further discussions will now take place with officials from Glasgow and Liverpool and a final decision will be made within weeks.

Martin Österdahl, executive supervisor for the Eurovision Song Contest, thanked the competing cities:

“The EBU (European Broadcasting Union) would like to warmly thank all the seven British cities that put so much effort and enthusiasm into their bids to host next year’s Eurovision Song Contest on behalf of Ukraine.

“We very much appreciate their cooperation and the quality and creativity of all the bids received.”