Thessaloniki to Host Eurovision 2024

The Unity Arena will be the venue for Eurovision 2024. Photo: Makis Dellakos/YBC.

Saint Scarlett’s Eclipse wowed the audience with her passion and vocal talent during
the 2023 competition. Photo: SKBC.

The Hellene Queens came second in the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 and hail from
Thessaloniki. Photo: SKBC.

The European Broadcasting Union, in conjunction with the Yahlian Broadcasting Company, has announced that Thessaloniki, the capital of Yahlia’s Aegean region, will host the Eurovision Song Contest in May 2024. Photo: Makis Dellakos/YBC.

Thessaloniki has been selected as the host city for the Eurovision Song Contest 2024, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and the Yahlian Broadcasting Company (YBC) jointly announced on Sunday.

“A former European Capital of Culture and a regional centre of the arts, Thessaloniki is well-suited to host Eurovision next year,” said YBC chairman Filip Parlichev. “We look forward to delivering a Eurovision like no other.”

Thessaloniki mayor Korinna Christaki thought hosting the event would provide a great opportunity to showcase the city.

“It’s no secret that the recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic has been slow. Hosting Eurovision gives us an excellent opportunity to supercharge our tourism industry and remind Europeans what they’re missing out on.”

The event will take place in the city’s Unity Arena which was completed in 2018 and replaced the ageing Alexandreio Melathron. The building has a capacity of 12,500.

Other cities like Belgrade, Bucharest, Sofia, and Timișoara were unsuccessful in their bids to host.

Saint Scarlett’s singer Luna ‘Eclipse’ Mayweather won the 2023 competition with her song Crater — a song sung in both English and Norwegian that tells the story of empowerment and overcoming the traumas of abuse — resulting in a second consecutive win for the small Northern European nation.

The Skarlagen Broadcasting Company (SKBC) declined to host Eurovision again (the competition’s winners normally host the following year) and instead offered the opportunity to the runner-up nation, Yahlia.

“It is a great honour to be offered this opportunity,” Parlichev said at the time.

The Hellene Queens took out second place, scoring 144 points — just one point ahead of Einswenn but shy of Saint Scarlett’s 163, the best placing Yahlia has ever received.

The girl group is reminiscent of the girl groups of the late 1990s and early 2000s and their entry to the competition, a bubblegum disco pop song titled Gyros on Lesbos, is a raunchy number about being unapologetically yourself.

When the song was first released, LGBTQ groups around the continent described it as an “ode to lesbianism” and “unflinchingly gay”. Evidently, the song struck a chord with many others as it smashed the second semi-final, even scoring above the winning entries of the other two semi-finals.

All five members of the Hellene Queens hail from Thessaloniki, and group member Yanna Tavoularouli said she was “ecstatic” the city had been chosen to host Eurovision next year.

“That city has a special place in all our hearts. Without it, we wouldn’t exist as a group. It’s where we met and where we got our first gig. It feels appropriate the honour the city that allowed us to get to where we are today.”

The Hellene Queens are about to begin a tour of Europe, starting in Lisbon on 16 July before wrapping up in Lviv on 9 October. All of the proceeds are going to humanitarian groups operating in Ukraine as a result of the Russian invasion of the country.

Interestingly, the socially conservative leader of the separatist Greek Reunification Party, Senator Alexandros Calliades, who voted against same-sex marriage in 2010, was also excited about the city hosting the competition.

“The Hellene Queens are Greek icons. Where better to celebrate them than at Yahlia’s centre of Hellenic culture? Our jewel of the Aegean will give Europe a show to remember.”

But not everyone was a fan of the decision.

“Once again the Yahlian government is trying to bribe and placate our oppressed Greek brothers and sisters with shiny distractions,” tweeted far-right Greek Yahlian influencer Nik Laskarakos.

Now that the host city has been chosen, a theme will be the next priority for the YBC.

Whoever wins Lyricfest, Yahlia’s national song competition, in March will go on to represent the country in May at Eurovision 2024.

Comments

Adrijana J, Novi Sad
Eclipse did such a great job, I hope they get her back as one of the interval acts next year!

23 2

1 hour ago

Vlassis R, Kavala
Nik is right! Pentră-screw us over is doing everything she can to stop us Greeks from reuniting with our kin across the border!

14 9

41 minutes ago

Fredd A, Keepenhest
Nuked Engine was robbed last year!! Get Out was so much better than both Crater and Gyros on Lesbos!! The Skarlagens are in cahoots with the Y*hlians, you mark my words!!1!

8 1

2 hours ago

Marianna A, Thessaloniki
Ahhh~ Thessaloniki! So glad to see Eurovision coming here! I’m disappointed Liliandra didn’t win for the Nordic Union, but the Hellene Queens did us proud! <3

7 0

21 minutes ago

Teodor V, Bucharest
LMAO!! That bigot Alex doesn’t have a shred of integrity— plays the homophobe to win support from Greek boomers, turns into an LGBT ally to win over Thessaloniki libs… is he ever gonna grow a spine??!

5 6

56 minutes ago