On 2 October 2015, Italian broadcaster RAI confirmed that the performer that would represent Italy at the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest would be selected from the competing artists at the Sanremo Music Festival 2016. According to the rules of Sanremo 2016, the winner of the "Campioni" or "Big Artists" category earns the right to represent Italy at the Eurovision Song Contest, but in case the artist is not available or refuses the offer, the organisers of the event reserve the right to choose another participant via their own criteria. The competition took place between 9–13 February 2016 with the winner being selected on the last day of the festival.