Following Dara’s victory, BNT and the Bulgarian government evaluate hosting bids from Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna, and Burgas for Eurovision 2027
The landslide victory of Dara and the song “Bangaranga” last weekend on the grand final stage in Vienna has officially launched the preparations for Eurovision 2027 – which is expected to take place in Bulgaria. The country now faces its first complex task: choosing the host city and arena to accommodate dozens of delegations from across Europe. Currently, four different cities have officially entered the running and declared they will submit their bids to the government.
The Battle for Hosting Begins
The capital city, Sofia, is currently seen as the consensus and main favorite among fans and organizers, mainly due to its developed logistical infrastructure, hotel capacity, and arena sizes that meet the strict standards of the EBU. However, the race is far from over; three other major cities in the country – Burgas, Plovdiv, and Varna – have submitted official inquiries to the government and expressed great interest in claiming the local hosting crown.
What Does the Eurovision Winner Think?
As mentioned, Sofia is the early favorite to host the competition, but in Dara’s opinion, the host city should be a different one.
In a post uploaded to the country’s official Instagram page, the question was raised as to which city should host the contest, to which Dara replied: “Hey Varna”. The singer was born in Varna, so this is undoubtedly a natural choice for her. In recent years, with the exception of the most recent edition, the EBU has indicated a preference for Eurovision to take place in non-capital cities. Since 2018, the Eurovision Song Contest has been held in a capital city only twice – Lisbon and Vienna.
A Historic Achievement for Bulgaria
Bulgarian Minister of Culture Evtim Miloshev addressed the wave of rumors and requests in an interview with the Bulgarian national broadcaster BNT, noting that the government intends to carefully and thoroughly evaluate all four options on the table before making a final decision. Miloshev sought to project confidence and issued a binding statement: “Bulgaria’s hosting will be at the exact same level as Austria’s”.
This current achievement and the preparations for hosting are considered a dramatic turning point for the Balkan nation. As a reminder, Bulgaria was forced to withdraw from the competition in recent years and did not participate. According to reports by the Danish national broadcaster TV2, the country’s absence from Eurovision was largely due to budgetary constraints and the financial inability of the national broadcaster to fund the high costs of participation and production. Now, with the trophy in hand, Bulgaria is ready to prove that the crisis is behind it and that it is prepared to stage the best show in Europe.
Bulgaria in eurovision 2026
“Bangaranga” is the song that performed by the singer DARA, which represented Bulgaria in Vienna, Austria. DARA won the cotest and got 516 points in the final. The song was written and composed by Dimitris Kontopoulos and Cristian Tarcea. While this is the performer’s first Eurovision entry, it marks the 15th song in the contest for composer Dimitris Kontopoulos. The song is performed entirely in English.
Eurovision 2026: This was Bulgaria’s 15th participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. Bulgaria joined the competition in 2005 and achieved its best result in Eurovision 2026 when the singer Dara finished in first place with the song “Bangaranga”.
