The Two Finalists
| City | Venue | Concert capacity | Meets 10,000+ EBU requirement? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sofia | Arena Sofia (Arena 8888) | ~18,000 | Yes |
| Burgas | Arena Burgas (opened 2023) | ~15,000 | Yes |
Sofia - the runner-up
Bulgaria's capital ticked the most boxes on paper: the country's largest indoor arena (Arena Sofia, capacity close to 18,000), the biggest international airport, the deepest hotel inventory, a metro system, and experience hosting the Junior Eurovision Song Contest in 2015. In the end the commission chose the seaside bid - but Sofia remains most fans' arrival airport and a superb stop on the trip. Read our Sofia guide β
Burgas - the winner π
The Black Sea city's modern Arena Burgas (opened 2023, up to ~15,000 for concerts) won the EBU and BNT over: a purpose-built venue, a seaside Eurovision in May, and enormous resort accommodation capacity along the coast. The commission also confirmed that Sofia, Plovdiv and Varna will be involved in the accompanying programme. Read our Burgas guide β
Eliminated: Plovdiv and Varna
Both bids were cut on 13 July 2026 after the EBU and BNT assessed the technical and production requirements. In both cases the venue was the deciding factor.
| City | Venue | Concert capacity | Why it fell short |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plovdiv | Kolodruma | ~7,500 | Below the 10,000 EBU minimum |
| Varna | Palace of Culture and Sports | ~6,000 | Below the 10,000 EBU minimum |
Plovdiv - Bulgaria's second city and European Capital of Culture 2019, one of Europe's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Kolodruma is primarily a velodrome, and lifting it to EBU standard would have meant substantial modification. It remains an excellent day trip from Sofia - see our Plovdiv guide.
Varna - DARA's hometown, which gave the bid a strong emotional storyline, but the Palace of Culture and Sports holds only around 6,000. With the contest in Burgas, Varna is an easy add-on up the Black Sea coast - our Varna guide has the details.
Map: The Candidate Cities
The gold-starred marker is Burgas, the winning host city. Green markers were the two finalists whose venues met the EBU's 10,000-spectator requirement; red ones were eliminated on 13 July. Click any marker for venue details. Airports are marked β. For contest-week planning, our Arena Burgas has the arena, hotel zones, fan zone and transfers in detail.
Map data Β© OpenStreetMap contributors. Venue locations are approximate.
How the Decision Was Made
The host broadcaster (BNT) ran a bidding process against EBU criteria, and the final call was made jointly with the EBU. The headline requirements:
- An indoor venue for at least 10,000 spectators, available for about eight weeks (seven before the Grand Final, one after).
- An international airport with good European connections.
- Thousands of hotel rooms for delegations, crew, press and fans.
- Infrastructure for side events: the Eurovision Village, EuroClub and the opening ceremony ("Turquoise Carpet").
Announcement Timeline
- 17 May 2026 BNT confirms its intention to host Eurovision 2027.
- Late May 2026 Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna and Burgas officially express interest.
- 8 June 2026 BNT launches the bidding process and issues requirements to the four cities.
- June-July 2026 Cities submit bids; BNT and EBU evaluate against technical and production criteria.
- 13 July 2026 Plovdiv and Varna eliminated. Sofia and Burgas go through as the two finalists.
- Late July-early August 2026 Joint EBU/BNT delegation visits both cities to assess venues, accommodation, transport and financial guarantees.
- 12 August 2026 Host city and venue announced: Burgas, Arena Burgas. Show dates confirmed: 11, 13 and 15 May 2027.
Why Burgas Won (and What We Got Wrong)
We called Sofia the favourite - the venue maths and infrastructure pointed that way, and a pre-announcement broadcast slip seemed to agree. The commission went the other way: Burgas, on the strength of a purpose-built 2023 arena, a compact seaside layout with the Sea Garden as a natural Eurovision Village, and tens of thousands of resort beds within 40 km. It will be the first seaside Eurovision since Tel Aviv 2019.
We keep this page updated as venue and programme details land - get an email alert or follow the news.