Festival di Sanremo‘s new Artistic Director Stefano De Martino has revealed major changes to the format of next year’s competition, including how Italy’s representative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2027 will be selected.
Eurovision selection to take place on Friday night
Speaking to Corriere della Sera, De Martino confirmed that Sanremo 2027 will follow a new five-night format.
All competing artists will perform their entries across Tuesday and Wednesday, before the traditional Cover Night takes place on Thursday. Friday will then be dedicated to selecting Italy’s representative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2027, while the winner of Festival di Sanremo will be crowned during Saturday’s Grand Final.
According to De Martino, the Eurovision representative and the Sanremo winner could still be the same artist if the voting produces the same outcome. However, he explained that the exact selection mechanism has not yet been decided.
“The artists will have the opportunity to stage their performance according to their own creative vision,” De Martino said. “I believe this is already a small step towards making the Festival more international.”
Fewer songs and a more international vision
Alongside the changes to the Eurovision selection, De Martino also confirmed that fewer songs will compete in Sanremo 2027 compared to recent editions.
“The idea is to reduce the number of entries so there is more room for the performances and the storytelling of the Festival, while placing greater focus on the artists”
The presenter also revealed that he has already received around 500 songs ahead of next year’s Festival, although he admitted he does not know the exact number of submissions.
De Martino recently signed a two-year deal as Artistic Director, meaning he will oversee both the 2027 and 2028 editions of Festival di Sanremo.
A new chapter for Italy’s Eurovision selection
If implemented as announced, the new format would mark the biggest change to Italy’s Eurovision selection process since the country returned to the Contest in 2011.
The new system would separate the Eurovision selection from the Festival itself, allowing Italy’s Eurovision representative to be chosen on Friday night while the overall Sanremo winner would be crowned the following evening.
Further details on how the Eurovision representative will be selected are expected to be announced in the coming months.
Italy’s Eurovision History
Italy has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest since the very beginning and have always been considered a powerhouse in the contest. The country has won the contest on three occasions in 1964, 1990 and 2021. Italy withdrew after 1997, returning again in 2011 with Raphael Gualazzi who sang ‘Madness Of Love’. Raphael placed second in the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest after scoring 189 points.
Italy’s most recent entry in 2026 was “Per sempre sì” by Sal da Vinci. At the close of voting, Italy scored a total of 281 points in the Eurovision 2026 Grand Final, placing 5th. Of these, 134 points came from the juries, whilst the remaining 147 points came from the televote.
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Photo credits: Sarah Louise Bennett / EBU
News source: Corriere della Sera
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