Ahead of the deadline for cities to submit their final bids to host the Eurovision Song Contest 2023, Sheffield is to hold a special Council meeting to iron out specific details regarding its bid.
Promoting Sheffield on the world stage
The city of Sheffield appeared on the list of shortlisted cities in mid-August, and has since been organising its bid to entice both the EBU and the BBC to bring the Contest to the city. Ahead of the bid submission deadline, the City Council’s strategy and resource committee held a meeting in August to allocate appropriate funds to the bid.
The city’s bid is being supported by the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA). In the planning meeting with the SYMCA in August, the minutes read:
Submitting a Host City bid at the first phase shows the city’s intent to be considered a major event hosting destination; there will be other bids submitted from destinations which can more easily meet the minimum criteria but perhaps cannot yet demonstrate the breadth of experience Sheffield offers.
The speed at which SYMCA has agreed support demonstrates the belief that this event will have a major positive impact across the South Yorkshire region.
Minutes of meeting between Sheffield and the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority
As well as this, the city is looking to focus on the pride of the Ukrainian people, hoping to incorporate Ukrainian elements from its twinned cities of Donetsk and Khmelnytskyi. Should the city not get to host the Contest, Eurovision events honouring the Ukrainian population in the region are still expected to be held.
A further meeting to discuss the final tweaks of the bid is set to be held on September 7th, a day before the deadline. Sheffield will then go on to submit their bid to the BBC.
Sheffield is one of seven cities hoping to host the Eurovision Song Contest 2023. The other cities in contention are:
United Kingdom’s Eurovision journey
Despite a recent slump in results, the UK is one of the most successful countries at the Eurovision Song Contest. Debuting at the second edition ever of the Contest in 1957, the United Kingdom has won the competition on five separate occasions. The most recent win for the UK was in 1997 with Katrina and the Waves, singing “Love Shine A Light”. The UK also holds the record for the number of second place finishes – currently at 16.
In 2022, the UK was represented by Sam Ryder with his song “SPACE MAN”. The performance managed to impress juries and televoters, and the UK finished in second place with 466 points, their best placing since 1998.
What do you make of Sheffield’s bid to host Eurovision? Do you think Sheffield will get to welcome Europe in May? As always, let us know what you think by commenting below. Also, be sure to follow ‘That Eurovision Site’ on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok as we prepare for Eurovision 2023!
News Source: The Star
Photo Credit: Hotels.com
