Eurovision Song Contest 2023: Bristol misses out as shortlisted host cities announced

Next year's Eurovision Song Contest will not take place in Bristol after the city did not make the shortlist.

Organisers revealed this morning (12 August) that Birmingham, Glasgow and Leeds are amongst the seven cities that made the cut.

They will battle it out alongside Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield in the next stage of the bidding process to host the 67th Eurovision Song Contest in place of Ukraine.

Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees announced earlier this week that the city's bid had been submitted.

He said if the city was successful, the contest would be held at the site of the YTL Arena in Filton.

Following the announcement that Bristol did not make the cut, he said: "Whichever other city does host Eurovision in 2023, Ukrainians must be at the heart of the Song Contest: it’s their party, in our house."

There had been criticism that Bristol did not have a suitable venue to host the event as the YTL Arena is not due to open until 2024.

There were also concerns over the lack of local infrastructure such as parking and accommodation for the thousands of visitors that would travel to the contest.

Organisers say the winner will need a large event space, suitable accommodation and international transport links for the competing countries and their delegations.

Ukrainian entry Kalush Orchestra triumphed at this year’s competition in Turin, Italy, but the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which produces the annual event, decided the event cannot be held in the war-torn country following Russia’s invasion.

The UK was given the chance to host Eurovision for the ninth time, more than any other country, after Sam Ryder came second in the competition.

The BBC, which broadcasts the contest in the UK, and the EBU made the shortlist selection based on the cities’ “capacity, capability and experience to host an event of this scale and complexity”.