Swiss city of Basel is chosen to host next year’s Eurovision Song Contest

GENEVA (AP) — The Swiss city of Basel will host next year’s Eurovision Song Contest from May 13 to 17, organizers announced Friday.

The mostly German-speaking city on the Rhine River bordering both France and Germany was selected over Geneva in a faceoff that generated buzz and anticipation across Switzerland.

Basel’s city council said in a statement that it was “delighted with the decision and sees hosting the world’s largest music competition as a great opportunity,”

“Basel will do everything in its power to be a good host,” it said.

The Alpine country won the right to host the annual glitzy song-and-dance extravaganza, which draws hundreds of millions of viewers worldwide, after Swiss singer Nemo won the contest’s 68th edition in May in Sweden.

Nemo’s winning song, “The Code,” is an operatic pop-rap ode to the singer’s journey toward embracing a nongender identity. Nemo is the first nonbinary winner of the contest that has long been embraced by the LGBTQ+ community.

Conradin Cramer, president of the Basel regional council, said the 2025 contest would reflect “the spirit of Basel, which is an open-minded spirit, a diverse spirit.”

He said that as a double border city, “we are used to having guests from all around the world and we will offer those guests an unbelievable experience.”

Swiss public broadcaster SSR-SRG said the selection of Basel and the St. Jakobshalle indoor arena was made based on criteria including the hall’s suitability to host the event, sustainability and safety issues, funds made available and “creative ideas for the side events.”

The song contest is organized each year by the European Broadcasting Union, which is based in Geneva, with dozens of participating broadcasters.

Basel’s city council cited an EBU study that found this year’s contest in the Swedish city of Malmö reached more than 160 million TV viewers and over 80 million YouTube users around the world. It said the advertising value of the event was estimated to be 805 million euros ($892 million).

Switzerland hosted and won the first edition in the southern city of Lugano in 1956. Nemo is the first Swiss winner since 1988, when Canada’s Celine Dion competed under the Swiss flag.

Eurovision is a celebration of the unifying power of pop, but it is often roiled by rivalries and political tensions. The 2024 contest was overshadowed by the war in Gaza and accompanied by large street protests against the participation of Israel.