The Eurovision 2025 season is starting to take shape. In recent times, it has been revealed that Geneva and Basel are the two cities in Switzerland left in the running to host the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest. All of this is obviously possible thanks to Nemo, who won the 2024 contest with their song โThe Codeโ.
What this editorial will explore?
This editorial will go into detail about Geneva as a city, as well as potential pros and cons when it comes to the city as the host of such a big contest as Eurovision. This editorial will also explore know aspects of Genevaโs bid. As well as a written editorial, Euan and Jonathan also recorded a video version of this editorial, which you can watch here.
About Geneva as a city
Geneva is the city in Switzerland with the second highest population. The city is situated in the French speaking region of the country Romandy. Geneva is seen as an international base for organisations. One of those organisations is the EBU – who takes charge of the Eurovision Song Contest.
Geneva is very close to the border of France, which you can cross via Lake Geneva, there are tram and railway services that connect the two countries. The tram line that serves both France and Geneva is situated in Annemasse in France. Geneva also has an international airport.
Details about Genevaโs bid
The City of Geneva has stated they have chosen a venue should they win their Eurovision bid. Eurovision 2025 would take place at the Palexpo. The Palexpo is an exhibition centre, which has seven halls. It is also noted that the Palexpo is one of the biggest exhibition centres in Europe.
It has been stated that the Palexpo could house up the 15,000 spectators, as well as the journalists in their three convention centres. As of March 2024 Geneva has 95 hotels, that can house 7,800 visitors. The budget that has been suggested is that of โฌ30 million.
Why Geneva would make a good host city for Eurovision 2025
The arena meets expectations of being able to house 10,000 spectators for the contest. The fact that they could house the journalists and the audience close together is also a good thing, as it means that they would have easy access to both the press centre and arena without the need to travel. Geneva would also be good due to all the transport connections it has, the international airport, but also the transport links to France.
Ease of getting around the host city is a key factor in what can make a host city a success. The airport serves most countries in Europe, as well as long haul flights from the United States. This makes it accessible for fans and artists travelling from abroad.
Due to the expense of travelling into Switzerland, there is a potential financial benefit for fans to hosting in Geneva. Due to the transport connections between Lyon and Geneva, there is a potential to fly into Lyon and then travel to Geneva via the train, which may save money on travel overall.
Drawbacks for Geneva as a host city for Eurovision 2025
The European Broadcasting Union may want the contest close to their headquarters, due to emerging issues during contests in recent years. However this has potential to be a double edged sword, due to the dissatisfaction from fans and the public on the EBUโs handling of certain situations, particularly in the last year. This could lead to protests and unrest in the city not just near the arena, but also outside the headquarters, which could be an issue for the Geneva locals going about their business.
Another issue could be the number of hotel rooms available in the city. There could be issues with housing all the delegations, as well as all the fans travelling into the city. It also needs to be taken into account that Geneva is a big tourist hotspot within Switzerland and Europe, and those visitors will also have to be taken into account. it should be noted that Geneva does meet the requirements in terms of hotel rooms to host the contest but there are aspects to think about.
All about Eurovision 2025
Switzerland will be hosting the 69th edition of the competition following Nemoโs historic win at Eurovision 2024 in Malmรถ. A few weeks after their win, Reto Peritz, and Moritz Stadler, was announced as the Executive Producers, with the other roles revealed in July 2024.
The following cities submitted a bid to host Eurovision 2025:
In mid-July, Swiss broadcaster SRG SSR announced that Geneva and Basel were the cities that made the final shortlist for hosting Eurovision 2025.
With the bidding period now over, the candidate cities will now present their bid, with site visits commenced at the beginning of July. By the end of July 2024, SRG SSR is set to reveal the two potential host cities that are still in the running, with the winning Eurovision 2025 host city to be revealed by the end of August.
Do you think Geneva should host Eurovision 2025? As always, let us know what you think by commenting below. Also, be sure to follow โThat Eurovision Siteโ on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Threads and Bluesky as we head towards Eurovision 2025!
News Source: That Eurovision Site
Photo Credit: Nilington/Wikimedia
Euan T