Will Vienna Host For A Third Time?
We’ve been to Vienna before, most recently in 2015 for the sixtieth anniversary. There’s likely going to be a political push to go elsewhere; Saltzburg and Innsbruck are likely to join in the bidding.
Yet given the demands of a modern contest (high load-bearing roofs, load-bearing floors, extensive hotel network and local facilities, international transport close by, and more), it’s hard to look beyond Vienna. Ten years between hosting is undoubtedly enough to calm down the ‘oh no, not again’ crowd and for ORF to have a fresh batch of ideas.
A Nod At New Year
Austria is home to arguably the second-largest Eurovision-branded event—the New Year’s Day Concert from the Great Hall of the Wiener Musikverein. ORF organises this every year, and its worldwide reputation makes tickets even harder to obtain than those for the Song Contest. 2015’s edition missed out on adding a dash of Marc-Antoine Charpentier to the running order. Maybe this New Year, that will change?
More Than An Orchestra
2015 opened with an overture from the Vienna Philharmonic orchestra, performing in the Schönbrunn Palace. It leaned heavily into the class of Vienna. But we could do so much more. How about a welcome party that’s a high society ball? Bring the elegance and the flair after an operatic win with JJ. Will there be a new consideration for an orchestra in the Arena?
Stadiums Rock
Speaking of stadiums, while we wait for the final tally of tickets sold, more than 40,000 Eurovision fans watched the show from the St Jakob-Park next door to St Jakobshalle. I’d expect that it will have generated a profit, and in the current economy, this will be an attractive option that could help a hosting city lower its investment. I’d expect every potential venue to pair up with a local sports stadium for maximum effect.
Hosts
JJ has already thrown his hat into the ring for a hosting gig (although any PR training will have led to the statement, “Don’t close off any future options.” With that said, his pure enthusiasm to do so was quickly on show at the press conference. Further, he’s asked if Conchita could be his co-host.
There’s a year between now and Semi Final 1 opening, more than enough time to train up on everything you would need to host and gain some experience on smaller ‘shiny floor’ shows. Personally, I think it’s more likely that JJ will get a supporting role, such as a separate Green Room Host from the more experienced main hosts.
Dealing With Those Getting Out The Vote
It’s now clear that the current televote system can be gamed, and not necessarily by the broadcaster that benefits from the push.
With 26 acts to vote for in the Grand Final, someone targeting a specific televote result is not chasing a high watermark of 50 percent to gain the douze points, just more votes than any of the other 25 acts. Twenty votes per phone is easily dodged around with a burner SIM card in many countries; other countries where the voting is gated by a credit or debit card to buy the votes removes the need for multiple SIM cards, just a bundle of pre-paid cards paired to multiple throwaway accounts.
I don’t know if there is an obvious answer to this. Finding a solution would require research, modelling, and stress testing. If the public loses confidence in the Eurovision voting system—as they did when Eastern European countries dominated the 100 percent Semi Final televoters in the first decade of the century—then the Song Contest’s short- and long-term success will be in jeopardy.
Don’t Play That Again
The rulebook was always thought to be clear with ’no live instruments on stage’…unless it’s a harmonica you can play through your microphone. Congratulations to Lucio Corsi and RAI’s delegation for finding a loophole and keeping it open until they reached Basel. I doubt it’s going to stay open by the time we reach May 2026.
I wonder what the next loophole will be?
The Code of Conduct v2
Following Malmö and an extensive survey of its members and other interested parties, the EBU introduced sweeping changes across many areas of the Eurovision Song Contest. Some of those steps were seen as an overreach, and any follow-up surveys this year will focus on where these need to be rowed back.
Some of those have already been highlighted, such as the rules around expectations on what journalists should write. No doubt others are on the ‘to be actioned’ piles that build up during the Contest. Those piles will also have areas that need to be tightened up after all the feedback is in from Basel.
No matter which direction the changes will go, there will be more changes to the fabric the Contest’s community have woven over the years.
Creative Director…and Certified Raver?
In 2022, Kaleen was the stage director for Junior Eurovision and was cthe reative director for several Junior Eurovision acts in 2021. She also worked on the stagings for acts in Eurovision in 2022, 2023 and 2025, often in collaboration with her husband, Marvin Dietmann.
While some might say Dietmann’s got the edge on her with a longer resume as creative director, we’d note that Kaleen has actually appeared as a contestant on the Eurovision stage, and thus has a unique perspective on what all the artists might be going through. ORF would miss a trick by not bringing Kaleen on board as part of its creative team …or at least having her lead a rave.
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