Minsk announced as the host city for Junior Eurovision 2018!

2018 will be the second time that Junior Eurovision will take place in Minsk, following BTRC’s hosting of the show in the Belarusian capital in 2010. 

To ensure the longevity of the Contest and allow more time to prepare the event, the Junior Eurovision Steering Group decided to remove a clause in the Rules that gave the winning broadcaster first refusal to host. EBU Members were given the opportunity to apply to host Junior Eurovision 2018 and the application from Belarus was judged to be the best.

Belarus has taken part in every Junior Eurovision Song Contest since the competition was created in 2003. The country has a very successful record at Junior Eurovision, winning in both 2005 with Ksenia Sitnik and 2007 with Alexey Zhigalkovich.

Jon Ola Sand, the EBU’s Head of Live Events said: "The rule change to allow a host for next year’s competition to be chosen earlier not only gives the host broadcaster longer to prepare what is a huge production but also protects the future of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest. We are therefore delighted to announce, before we gather in Tbilisi for the 2017 competition, that BTRC will be the host broadcaster of the 2018 Junior Eurovision Song Contest. BTRC’s application to host was extremely strong, and we have full confidence that they will put the same enthusiasm into the preparations of next year’s event." 

Countdown to Tbilisi

The 2017 Junior Eurovision Song Contest is only weeks away. The contest will take place on Sunday 26th November and be held in Tbilisi, Georgia. It will be the first time that the country has staged a Eurovision event. Georgia has won the Junior Eurovision Song Contest three times in total, most recently in 2016. 

For the first time ever, a new voting structure will be introduced to allow viewers from around the world to vote online for their favourite artists! The final audience result will be a combination of both pre-show and live voting rounds, accounting for 50% of the total vote.

Visit the official website of Junior Eurovision for more information about the competition.