Photo credits: © REGIS COLOMBO/diapo.ch The last time Switzerland hosted the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) was in 1989, with Lausanne as the host city. However, the city is out of the race to host the event in 2025, after the country won the event this year.
Lausanne’s Mayor, Grégoire Junod, explained that the city lacks suitable infrastructure for the event: “The only venue that could potentially meet the requirements is the Vaudoise árena, but we are already at the limit of what is needed. We also do not have the additional facilities required, particularly for accommodating the press center”.
Moreover, the mayor admitted that the arena will not be available during the necessary weeks due to the ice hockey season. With Lausanne out, Junod supports Geneva’s bid, which is the only official candidacy so far: “We would be very happy if Geneva, for example, hosted the event at Palexpo,” he stated.
The broadcaster SRG SSR will open the applications with the necessary requirements and is expected to make a decision by September. Besides Geneva, there has also been interest from Basel and Saint Gallen. Lugano, which hosted the first ESC in 1956, has also ruled out bidding to host the event.
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