EBU confirms that Eurovision Asia is not happening

Cancel those flights to Mumbai, Eurovision Asia is not happening!

Eurovision organisers have denied reports suggesting that an expansion of the Eurovision Song Contest in Asian was is in development, following the emergence of news and listings from broadcasters in Bhutan and Vietnam.

Earlier this week, a video began circulated by Bhutanese broadcaster, Bhutan Broadcasting Service (BBS), that a national selection has begun in the country for Eurovision Asia.

In a video, speaking in English, news anchor Kelzang Dolkar revealed the Eurovision Song Contest will be extended into Asia. She mentioned that Bhutan will take part, with the contest to host 18 countries and that it will be hosted in Mumbai, India later this year.

Speculation intensified when Vietnamese network, Ho Chi Minh City Television (HTV; Đài Truyền hình Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh) has allocated a time slot on HTV 7 for a show called Eurovision Asia for 31 August 19:30 Vietnam time.

However, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has now clarified that no such project is currently underway.

In a exclusive statement with The Euro Trip podcast, Director of the Eurovision Song Contest, Martin Green CBE, confirmed that the contest had not been authorised.

“Earlier this week a broadcaster in Bhutan broadcast a selection show for Eurovision Song Contest Asia,” Green said. “Our format rights holders in Asia have spoken to them and the episodes have now been taken off air and deleted from online platforms.

“While it is no secret that we would love to see an edition of the Eurovision Song Contest in Asia, no plans have been confirmed or announced to date.”

Martin Green at Eurovision 2023

Talk of expansion has followed the contest’s recent rebranding efforts, with the EBU creating a visual identity that could be applied across potential spin-offs. While Green previously suggested international editions remain a possibility, he emphasised that no such developments are currently in motion.

Plans for an Asian version of the Eurovision Song Contest have been in the works for nearly a decade but have not materialised. The concept was first formally announced in 2016 by Australian broadcaster SBS, with an inaugural edition originally set for 2017. However, the project faced numerous delays before being ultimately shelved.

In 2021, SBS Commissioning Editor and Australian Head of Delegation Josh Martin confirmed that the broadcaster had officially abandoned the project. “We spent a number of years trying to figure out how to do it, and then the global pandemic came along,” Martin explained, adding that SBS had rescinded its rights to the format.

This wasn’t the first attempt to launch an Asian or Asia-Pacific Eurovision spin-off. Earlier efforts under the name Asiavision were licensed by the EBU, with proposed contests set for Macau in 2009 and Mumbai in 2010—neither of which went ahead. SBS was also expected to be involved in those plans.

Despite setbacks, there was renewed optimism in 2022 when Paul Clarke, a former Australian Head of Delegation, hinted during an awards speech that Eurovision Asia was still a priority.

For now Eurovision Asia is not happening. Only time will tell if it happens in the future.

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