Eurovision 2019: KAN releases hosting criteria; Is the race leaning to one city already?
The Israeli national broadcaster, KAN, gave to the public the full hosting criteria for the next Eurovision Song Contest in 2019 as the city selection is take place in the following months. So which are the official requirements that KAN with the European Broadcasting Union will seek to find in cities submitting a bid for the next Eurovision Song Contest? Is there a city that already fulfills the criteria bringing it a step closer of being the next ESC host city?
Criteria for candidate cities
According to KAN’s release of official criteria for the cities that apply in the bidding process come down to three basic conditions:
- Venue capacity: The stadium that will host the event must be available from March 2019 until the end of May 2019 and should be able to accommodate a total of seated and standing audience of 8.000 to 12.000 spectators.
In addition to the venue a press center must be located near the it and will be able to host a number of 1.500 journalists at least , that will cover the whole event during the two weeks ahead of the final night of the contest.
According to the local media the two cities that seem to fulfill already the specific requirements are Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. In the first city is located the Pais Arena which fits the criteria to be the next hosting venue in case of a Jerusalem while in Tel Aviv there are two potential venues, the Menora Mivtachim Arena and the Pavilion 2 at the Tel Aviv Convention Center both appropriate to function as the hosting venues.
Pais Arena (Jerusalem)
Menora Mivtachim Arena (Tel Aviv)
Pavilion 2 at the Tel Aviv Convention Center (Tel Aviv)
2. Two Weeks Full Availabily: Another significant point for the potential host cities is the fact of being entirely in disposal for rehearsals taking place over the weekends. The whole rehearsal schedule is extended every year in two weeks time. This period includes two weekends. So the next issue that arises is whether Jerusalem can comply with such timetable since the holiday of Sabbath doesn’t leave room for any activities. This is a condition that may lean the whole bidding process to the city of Tel Aviv.
3. Accommodation capacity: The third crucial condition that seems that both cities can fulfill, is that of the accommodation ability. According to estimations the host city must have in their disposal a number of 3,000 hotel rooms at least.
Having these basic conditions arising for the next potential host city, the cities of Eilat and Haifa may already be falling back in the race. However, all cities can submit their applications until 17th July , while he final decision alongside with the dates are to be determined by next September.
The Eurovision Song Contest has changed so much the latest years, has grown not only in viewing figures but all numbers concerning the participating countries, the size of national delegations, the accredited journalists and fans, the visitors attending the shows. This development is making the hosting even more challenging and demanding for each host country, making it for minor cities to comply with.
Israel won the right to host The next Eurovision Song Contest 2019 after Netta’s victory in Lisbon last May with her entry Toy.
