UK to Host Eurovision Song Contest in 2023 Instead of Ukraine

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) announced on Monday that the United Kingdom will host the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest instead of the 2022 winner country, Ukraine.

"The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and the BBC have confirmed that the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest will be hosted in the United Kingdom on behalf of this year’s winning broadcaster, Ukraine’s UA:PBC," the EBU statement read.

Last week, EBU made the final decision to transfer the contest to a new host country from Ukraine, which won the Contest in May 2022, for safety and security reasons.

"Last week [Ukrainian] President [Volodymyr] Zelenskyy and I agreed that wherever Eurovision 2023 is held, it must celebrate the country and people of Ukraine. As we are now hosts, the UK will honour that pledge directly – and put on a fantastic contest on behalf of our Ukrainian friends," UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a tweet.

EBU noted that the bidding contest for the host city will begin this week and the logo will be revealed later. The BBC will work closely with the Ukrainian broadcaster to incorporate Ukrainian elements of the show. EBU also underscored that Ukraine will automatically qualify for the finale alongside with the traditional Big 5 (UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy).

"It is a matter of great regret that our colleagues and friends in Ukraine are not able to host the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest... The BBC is committed to making the event a true reflection of Ukrainian culture alongside showcasing the diversity of British music and creativity," BBC Director-General Tim Davie said in a statement.

The BBC has previously taken on hosting duties for other countries in the Eurovision: for the Netherlands in 1960, France in 1963, Monaco in 1972, Luxembourg in 1974. For the UK, hosting the Contest in 2023 will be the ninth time a Eurovision event is taking place in the country.