Austria’s capital, Vienna, has been selected by host broadcaster ORF and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to host the 70th Eurovision Song Contest in May 2026.
Austrian Broadcasting Corporation (ORF) will stage next year’s competition following JJ’s win in Basel on 17 May with “Wasted Love”, giving Austria its third-ever Eurovision Song Contest win.
The grand final of the 70th Eurovision Song Contest will be held on Saturday 16 May at the Wiener Stadthalle, Austria's largest indoor arena, with semi-finals earlier in the same week.
Vienna hosted Austria’s first Eurovision contest in 1967. It also hosted the 60th Eurovision Song Contest in 2015, following Conchita Wurst’s victory in 2014 and will now host the 70th edition in 2026.
Austria’s capital was reportedly chosen following a competitive city bid process that examined facilities at the venue, local infrastructure and the ability to accommodate thousands of visiting delegations, crew, fans, and journalists from around the world, amongst other criteria.
More recent Eurovision host cities have included Liverpool (2023), Malmo (2024), and Basel (2025).
Martin Green, Director of the Eurovision Song Contest, said: “Vienna’s reputation as one of the most musical cities in the world, and its location in the heart of Europe, makes it the perfect host city for the 70th Eurovision Song Contest.”
.jpg)
Roland Weißmann, Director General of host broadcaster ORF, added: "After thorough examination and based on a unanimous jury assessment, ORF concluded that Vienna's offer is not only the most attractive in terms of infrastructure and logistics but also economically. The contest is a celebration for all of Austria, which we will all be proud of."
Martin Österdahl recently announced he would step down from his role as Executive Supervisor of the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) and Junior Eurovision Song Contest (JESC) after five years overseeing the world’s largest music event. Discover more here.
.jpg)
IBC launches study to map the media technology talent pipeline
IBC has launched How Did You Get Here?, a study designed to better understand how people enter and build careers in media technology.
Netflix kicks of landmark distribution deal with France’s TF1
Leading French broadcaster TF1’s live channels and streamer TF1+ are now available on Netflix’s platform in France following a landmark distribution deal between the two companies.
UK government sets out plans to give prominence for PSB news on social media
The UK government has set out plans to make social media platforms such as YouTube and Facebook give greater prominence to news from public service media.
Warner Bros. Discovery teams with AWS for agentic AI ad-tech
Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has partnered with cloud provider Amazon Web Services (AWS) to develop its next-generation advertising experiences built with AWS agentic AI.
Active International picks Comcast Technology Solutions
Comcast Technology Solutions (CTS) has announced that Active International, the global media and corporate trade group, is using Comcast AdFusion to modernise and scale its broadcast ad traffic and creative distribution operations.
