Birmingham to submit Eurovision host bid, Council Leader says

The winners of the 2022 contest Credit: PA

Birmingham will put in a bid to host the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest, the leader of the City Council has told ITV News Central.

Councillor Ian Ward suggested that the city would make an application to be the host city, after it was announced the UK would host the event on behalf of 2022 winners Ukraine.

Due to the ongoing conflict there, a city in the UK will host the contest, after British entry Sam Ryder was the runner up in this years competition.

Several cities had already announced intentions to host the contest before the news was confirmed and it's likely many more will now throw their hats into the ring.

The UK's Sam Ryder came second in 2022 Credit: PA

The bidding process will be jointly managed by the BBC, which will show Eurovision, and EBU, with host cities needing a large events space, suitable accommodation and international transport links for the competing countries and their delegations.

Cities which have already announced their bids are:

  • Sheffield

  • Bristol

  • London

  • Manchester

  • Brighton

  • Liverpool

  • Cardiff

  • Leeds

The UK has hosted the contest on eight previous occasions, in London, Edinburgh, Brighton, Harrogate and Birmingham.

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