Austria in ESC fever: cities compete for the big appearance!

Austria in ESC fever: cities compete for the big appearance!

In the past few days, everything has been about the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) 2026, and on July 2, 2025, a decisive meeting of the working group of city tourism took place in Innsbruck. Not only were representatives from the federal capital, but also delegates of other state capitals that exchanged information about future tourism strategies and formulated their interests in the execution of the ESC. Barbara Plattner from Innsbruck and Norbert Kettner from Vienna led the discussion, which made it clear that the distinction between holiday guests and locals is considered outdated. Overall, nine Austrian state capitals have agreed on new urban strategies and see the application for the ESC 2026 as an exciting challenge.

The Minister of Culture and Media Babler spoke of a big moment for the Austrian music scene when he welcomed the return of the ESC to Austria. Innsbruck, Oberwart and Wels have already expressed their interest in the edition, while Graz also thinks about discussing an application in their city senate. Mayor Johannes Anzengruber von Innsbruck emphasized the Olympiahalle as the ideal venue, while a new exhibition hall for 2026 is planned in Wels. There are also efforts in Lower Austria to align the ESC in the state.

Vienna in the race for the ESC

Vienna Mayor Michael Ludwig sees the possible ESC victory as a big moment and emphasizes the ability of the city to professionally organize major international events. Support also comes from City Councilor Veronica Kaup-Hasler, who praises Vienna's diversity and indicates the chance to inspire people for opera and music. Klagenfurt and Salzburg, on the other hand, took out the race due to financial and infrastructural restrictions.

Tourismus State Secretary Elisabeth Zehetner not only sees a cultural event in the ESC, but also a huge opportunity for domestic tourism and the international image of Austria. The ESC 2015 in Vienna, for example, generated sales of almost 30 million euros and brought over 100,000 guests to the city. Isn't that impressive?

economic perspectives

The economic opportunities of another Eurovision Song Contest in Austria are enormous. As an earlier study showed, the ESC could create numerous jobs and toast investments in the infrastructure. The ORF general director Roland Weißmann emphasized that despite the financial challenges, a high-quality show is being used. Several cities hope to benefit from the advantages associated with the event. The number of spectators at the final appearance of JJ, who won the ESC 2025, were breathtaking - up to 1.3 million persecuted.

For more information about these exciting developments, the reporting of fvw href = "https://www.kosmo.at/esc-2026-in-welcher-stadt-werd-der-song-contest-stattfinde/" target = "_ blank"> kosmo and leadersnet available.