Swiss cities vie to host the ESC in 2025
Published: Sunday, May 12th 2024, 15:00
Updated At: Monday, May 13th 2024, 01:59
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Following Nemo's historic victory at the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) in Malmö, Sweden, the competition to host the ESC 2025 has begun in Switzerland. Geneva has already applied and Basel has also expressed interest. Nemo's home town of Biel BE, however, will probably not be considered due to a lack of space, although Nemo would like it to be.
It remains to be seen which Swiss city will host the Eurovision Song Contest in 2025. But the day after the 24-year-old musical talent's ESC victory, Basel and Geneva threw their hats into the ring - and even the head of Olma wants to bring the event to St. Gallen.
Interested cities can apply to host the financially attractive event following the call for tenders. The Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG) will then decide together with SRF Television as the host and the organizer, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).
On Monday, an SRG task force will begin preparations for hosting the singing competition in Switzerland. According to an SRG spokesperson, there are many requirements that interested cities must fulfill. However, the added value for the region and the city concerned is immense.
It is not known how high the costs of hosting the ESC will be. According to estimates, they will amount to between 30 and 40 million francs.
Biel has too few hotel rooms
"I would love it if the ESC 2025 could take place in Biel/Bienne," said Nemo at a media conference on Sunday night. "The problem could be that it would need at least 10,000 hotel rooms, and Biel/Bienne has maybe 500." But if every household took someone in, it might be enough. And otherwise, perhaps the opening ceremony could simply take place in Biel.
Nemo was inundated with congratulations. The win is a recognition of the music act's diverse talents and personality, wrote Culture Minister Elisabeth Baume-Schneider on Platform X.
Nemo's home town of Biel celebrated the Swiss victory in style on Sunday night. Cultural Director Glenda Gonzalez Bassi (SP) watched the spectacle at a public viewing event in the city center. The victory means a lot to the city, she told the Keystone-SDA news agency on Sunday. "We are very proud of Nemo."
The Swiss ESC delegation leader was overjoyed. Nemo had delivered a "sensational performance", said Yves Schifferle. SRG Director General Gilles Marchand also watched Nemo's victory on site in Malmö. "A great success for Nemo, for Switzerland and for the whole team that made this victory possible," said Marchand. He is looking forward to the "Swiss" ESC edition in 2025.
Trophy broken
Nemo had already been celebrated frenetically in Malmö. In the frenzy of victory, another mishap occurred - the ESC trophy he had won broke. Nemo put a positive spin on it. With an injured thumb, the talented musician said that perhaps not only the trophy needed to be repaired, but also the ESC event. At the award ceremony, Nemo appealed for peace and human dignity.
Commentators in the media at home and abroad paid great respect to Nemo's victory. In times of crisis, Nemo could be the best thing that could have happened to the music competition, according to the tenor. After all, the ESC 2024 was extremely politically charged and chaotic in the run-up: several candidates criticized the participation of Israeli singer Eden Golan with regard to the Gaza war.
There were also demonstrations against Israel's participation, with climate activist Greta Thunberg being taken away by the police in Malmö. In addition, Dutch candidate Joost Klein was excluded by the EBU at short notice just hours before the final due to an "incident" with a camerawoman.
Nemo finally came out on top on Saturday evening after a neck-and-neck race with Croatian favorite Baby Lasagna. Nemo scored 591 points for Switzerland with the song "The Code". Croatia scored 547 points. Alyona Alyona & Jerry Heil from Ukraine surprisingly followed in third place with 453 points. Nemo had been one of the clear favorites for weeks. He topped the country juries and came fifth in the public vote.
The approximately four-hour television broadcast of the ESC was a success with almost eight million viewers and 1.4 million streams on the internet. More than 160 million viewers were expected worldwide, making the ESC the most watched music competition in the world.
Journey to yourself
The Berlin-based Swiss ESC lucky charm told his own story with "The Code". "'The Code' is about the journey I began with the realization that I am neither a man nor a woman," said Nemo in the run-up to the show, as Nemo is non-binary, meaning he identifies neither clearly as a woman nor a man. Nemo accompanied the performance with an artistic stage show. He danced spectacularly and flawlessly on a rotating platform.
The plan was for Nemo to fly back to Switzerland on Sunday evening. Nemo then wants to travel home to Biel in order to process what has happened.
Nemo was Switzerland's third victory in the 68-year history of the music competition. The first victory came at the premiere of the then "Grand Prix Eurovision de la Chanson" in 1956 in Lugano TI with Lys Assia. 32 years later, Céline Dion took victory in Dublin in 1988.
©Keystone/SDA
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