Austria in ESC fever: Innsbruck and Vienna fight for contest 2026!

Innsbruck bewirbt sich um den Eurovision Song Contest 2026, Entscheidung fällt im August 2025. Erfahren Sie mehr über die Bewerbungsdetails und den Wettbewerb.
Innsbruck is applying for the Eurovision Song Contest 2026, decision is made in August 2025. Learn more about the application details and the competition. (Symbolbild/ANAGAT)

Austria in ESC fever: Innsbruck and Vienna fight for contest 2026!

It's a reason to celebrate: The Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) returns to Austria after eleven years! As the orf , Innsbruck and Vienna have applied for the orientation of the ESC 2026. The cities were able to submit their application documents by July 4, and both did this on time. Who will be awarded the contract? This question not only concerns music fans, but also the city administrations.

Innsbruck and Vienna are in the starting blocks to further concretize their concepts. The first local eye tickets have already been carried out in the Olympiaworld Innsbruck and the Vienna Stadthalle. These two locations offer everything that makes the heart of an ESC fan beat faster. The decision as to which city will be the coveted host city of the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest is expected to be announced in the second half of August.

collaboration on high tours

ORF general director Roland Weißmann is enthusiastic about the applications and describes them as exciting and promising. Michael Krön, Executive Producer of the ESC 2026, thanked the project teams for their creative submissions, which apparently encountered great interest. It looks like the competition between the two cities would be very lively.

But what makes the ESC so special? The Eurovision Song Contest is the oldest international music competition on television and has developed many facets since its first implementation in Lugano. The competition is organized by public service broadcasters of the European Radio Union (EBU), and now non-European countries such as Australia can also take part. This is a sign of the international connection that the ESC has built up over the decades.

ESC story: a brief review

From his beginnings, when two songs per country were first selected, to today's rules that prohibit political statements in order not to endanger the cooperation of the broadcasters, the ESC has gone through a lot. The introduction of the rating system with the famous "12 points" and the inclusion of public voting are just a few of the steps that have led to a modern ESC. Famous winners such as Abba and Céline Dion are only the tip of the iceberg.

We can hardly wait for the decision of the Host City and are excited to see which place will prepare the stage for the next musical spectacle. The anticipation for a unique event that combines people and focuses on celebrating music is already noticeable! What do you think, which city has the better concept? We keep you up to date!

Details
OrtInnsbruck, Österreich
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