It’s home to the legendary Sanremo Music Festival. However, comments from Sanremo’s mayor suggest that the iconic Ariston Theater would not host Eurovision 2022 should the city be successful in its bid for next year’s song contest. Instead, the town’s first citizen has named the Mercato dei Fiori (Flower Market) as a potential venue.
Sanremo’s mayor suggests the Mercato dei Fiori for Eurovision 2022
Most will be unsurprised by the possibility of the Ariston being passed over. The venue can only accommodate approximately 2,000 people, which falls well short of the requirements set by RAI and the EBU. Aside from capacity, it is unlikely to offer the ceiling height and backstage space need for a Eurovision production.
Nicknamed ‘The City of Flowers’, Sanremo is famed for its blossoms. So choosing the Mercato dei Fiori as a venue would carry much significance. The city’s mayor, Alberto Biancheri, says: “As a location, we can also think of the Mercato dei Fiori, or other structures. If there is the will to do it in Sanremo, as an administration we are ready to take action with all our strength”. The market hosted the Sanremo Music Festival in 1990, the only time the event has ever left the Ariston. Then it held about 5,000 people along with an orchestra.
Biancheri acknowledges that a venue is one area in which the city might fall down in its efforts to host Eurovision. “We are aware that many requirements requested by the Eurovision organisation are met by our city”, he says. “While we have to work on others, thinking in particular of spaces.”
However, he strongly feels that the city should play some part in the 2022 event. “Our city played a fundamental role in the goal reached by Måneskin, winners of the Festival and therefore protagonists at Eurovision. I thought it right to present the candidacy of Sanremo. If the event were to be held elsewhere, I strongly believe that Sanremo should be involved in some way, either directly by Eurovision, or with collateral events and connections”.
Eurovision 2022 bidding process
A total of 17 Italian cities have submitted initial declarations of interest to RAI. They are:
- Acireale (Catania)
- Alessandria
- Bertinoro di Romagna (Forlì – Cesena)
- Bologna
- Genoa
- Florence
- Jesolo (Venice)
- Matera
- Milan
- Palazzolo Acreide (Syracuse)
- Pesaro
- Rimini
- Rome
- Sanremo (Imperia)
- Turin
- Trieste
- Viterbo
The next stage will see all the candidates complete a more detailed document with the necessary requirements for hosting Eurovision. These bid books must be submitted to RAI by Wednesday 4 August. The final decision will be made by RAI in conjunction with the EBU by the end of August.
What do you think of Sanremo’s chances? Would you like to go to Eurovision there? Let us know in the comments.
The ceiling is clearly too low. No way Sanremo can host.
Too bad Sanremo isn’t a little closer to Turin, because it would be cool to have the red (or whatever the color they pick this time) carpet there as a symbolic gesture. Based on what I’ve searched, It turns out that the closest city to Sanremo that may host Eurovision someday is Nice (supposing they have a venue for that, of course).
Cannes have host eurovision in the past in 1959 and 1961
True. Nice is just a little closer to Sanremo, but also Cannes is closer than Turin. I never realized how close Sanremo is to the border with France.
ESC Sanremo 2022: Flower Power (La Forza di Fiore)