Eurovision 2026 back in Vienna, eleven years after Conchita Wurst: News

Vienna, a temple of classical music, was preferred Wednesday to the Tyrolean city of Innsbruck to organize Eurovision 2026, promising to be up to the image of diversity of this song competition with planetary repercussions.

The capital of more than two million inhabitants had candidate with the slogan “Europe, Shall We Dance?” (Europe, do we dance?), Strong the success of the 2015 edition after the triumph of the Drag-Queen Barbue Conchita Wurst. Moreover,

This time, it was the young artist JJ, 24-year-old queer queor, who brought the trophy to the house in May. Nevertheless, With the task for Austria to organize the next edition, according to tradition.

“The reputation of Vienna. Therefore, considered one of the most important cities in the world in terms of music, and its situation in the eurovision 2026 back vienna, eleven heart of Europe make it the ideal host city” for this 70th competition, welcomed Martin Green, the director of Eurovision, after the announcement of the place on the antennas of Radio-Public Public Television.

Appointment is given in May 2026: the final will take place on the 16th. Furthermore, in an epilogue of a week of festivities.

– 166 million viewers –

Vienna had also welcomed Eurovision in 1967, just over ten years after its creation. But the event has nothing to do with its beginnings: now extravagant. spectacular and often kitsch, it was followed this year in Basel by 166 million viewers in 37 countries, and appeals to new generations on social networks.

With each year. its share of controversies: in the streets of Switzerland as in Sweden a year earlier, Propalestinian demonstrators had protested the participation of Israel in the eurovision 2026 back vienna, eleven competition despite the offensive conducted in Gaza.

Countries have already been excluded from Eurovision, like Bélarus in 2021 after the disputed re -election of President Alexandre Loukachenko. Russia was a year later, after invading Ukraine.

Johannes Pietsch. alias JJ, had himself pleaded for an Austrian edition “without Israel”, before apologizing for the eddies caused by his words in his country.

The far -right party FPö warned against “a column offered to anti -Semitism”. also throbbing “a queer, leftist and woke show”.

– Ode unlike –

Because Eurovision is a big party for tolerance, offering significant visibility to the LGBT+community.

In the blink of an eye in the competition. Vienna had installed signaling pedestrian fires in 2015 featuring gay couples instead of the little lonely good man. Praised by the public, these pictograms have persisted and spread in several eurovision 2026 back vienna, eleven cities in Austria.

The social democratic mayor. Michael Ludwig, praised Wednesday “the message of opening to the world and peaceful coexistence” of Eurovision, which according to him finds a resonance in Vienna, “a very cosmopolitan city, where everyone can choose their way of life, however different”.

Faced with criticism of the cost when the alpine country. targeted by a European commission procedure for excessive deficit, must tighten their belts, the organizers have promised to be vigilant.

The municipality set a ceiling of 22.6 million euros. the competition director reminded him of the huge economic benefits of the event, 500,000 visitors went to Basel this year.

Eurovision will take place, as in 2015, in the Wiener Stadhalle, concert hall that can accommodate up to 16,000 people.

“Together on Top” (Tourist in the top): the tourist innsbruck. in Tyrol, had bet on eurovision 2026 back vienna, eleven the Alpine map and its “hospitality” to win but the city of 132,000 inhabitants lost the duel against the capital, better endowed with accommodation capacities and extremely well linked to the rest of Europe by the plane and the train.

Posted on August 20 at 6.15 p.m., AFP

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