Here’s why Birmingham missed out on hosting Eurovision 2023

Birmingham has missed out on hosting the Eurovision song contest for what would have been the second time.

Liverpool and Glasgow are the two cities which remain in the competition to host the 2023 competition, the BBC has announced. They have been selected after Birmingham, Leeds, Newcastle, Sheffield and Manchester were removed from contention to host the music event in place of Ukraine.

Announcing the news, Phil Harrold, the chairman of the BBC’s host city selection committee, said: “Thanks to all seven cities across the UK who have demonstrated the enthusiasm and passion for Eurovision that exists right across the UK.

“We were incredibly impressed by the quality and creativity of all the city bids in what was a highly competitive field.

“The Eurovision Song Contest is a very complex event and Liverpool and Glasgow have the strongest overall offer; we will continue our discussions with them to determine the eventual host city. We are determined to make the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest one that both reflects the winning position of Ukraine and is also an event that all of the UK can participate in.”

Why did Birmingham miss out?

Birmingham previously hosted the Eurovision Song contest in 1998 at the National Indoor Arena, but missed out on the opportunity to host a second time.

The NEC’s Resorts World Arena would have been the venue in Birmingham to host the competition. Posting on Twitter, West Midlands mayor Andy Street said Brum didn’t make the final shortlist due to ‘a technical issue around the venue’s roof height’.

He said: “Birmingham hasn’t made the Eurovision runoff due to a technical issue around the venue’s roof height. An incredibly frustrating reason to miss out - not least because of the solutions the NEC put forward. We gave it our all, and will continue to bid for the biggest events.

Cllr Ian Ward, Leader of Birmingham City Council, said: “Congratulations to Glasgow and Liverpool for making the final shortlist to host Eurovision 2023. Birmingham wishes both cities all the best in their bids to be the host city.

“As the Proud Host City of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, we know the benefits of hosting such a prestigious global event.

“I would like to thank the NEC Group and everyone involved in the Birmingham bid and a special thank you to our local Ukrainian community and Centrala Space who were fully supportive throughout the whole process.”

A message from the editor:Thank you for reading. BirminghamWorld is Birmingham’s latest news website, championing everything that is great about our city - reporting on news, lifestyle and sport. Find out more about who’s who in the team, and our editorial values. We want to start a community among our readers, so please follow us on Facebook,Twitter and Instagram, and keep the conversation going.