Velnakin World Song Contest 23

The Velnakin World Song Contest 23 will be the 23rd edition of the Velnakin World Song Contest. It will take place in the Aztec Stadium in Mexico City, Mexico, following Mexico's victory at the 22nd Contest in Australia with the song "Ecos de Amor", performed by the duo Jesse & Joy . This will be the third time the contest has taken place in Mexico, after the 6th and 11th editions.

Fifty countries will participate. Austria and Philippines will debute. Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Kazakhstan, Monaco, New Zealand, Serbia and Turkey will return in the competition, while Ireland, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon and Slovenia have decided to withdraw.

## Location

Further information: Mexico

**Mexico City**

**Mexico** (Listeni/ˈmɛksᵻkoʊ/; Spanish: México [ˈmexiko]), officially the United Mexican States (Spanish: Estados Unidos Mexicanos), is a federal republic and sovereign nation located in North America. The country is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Belize, Guatemala and the Caribbean Sea; and to the east by the Gulf of Mexico. Covering almost two million square kilometres (over 760,000 sq mi), Mexico is the fifth largest country in the Americas by total area and the 13th largest independent nation in the world. With an estimated population of over 120 million, it is the eleventh most populous country and the most populous Spanish-speaking country in the world and the second most populous country in Latin America. Mexico is a federation comprising thirty-two states, including Mexico City, its capital and largest city, which is also a state.

Pre-Columbian Mexico was home to many advanced Mesoamerican civilizations, such as the Olmec, Toltec, Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Maya and Aztec before first contact with Europeans. In 1521, the Spanish Empire conquered and colonized the territory from its base in Mexico-Tenochtitlan, which was administered as the Viceroyalty of New Spain. Three centuries later, this territory became Mexico following recognition in 1821 after the colony's Mexican War of Independence. The tumultuous post-independence period was characterized by economic instability and many political changes. The Mexican–American War (1846–48) led to the territorial cession of the extensive northern borderlands, one-third of its territory, to the United States. The Pastry War, the Franco-Mexican War, a civil war, two empires and a domestic dictatorship occurred through the 19th century. The dictatorship was overthrown in the Mexican Revolution of 1910, which culminated with the promulgation of the 1917 Constitution and the emergence of the country's current political system.

Mexico has the fifteenth largest nominal GDP and the eleventh largest GDP by purchasing power parity. The Mexican economy is strongly linked to those of its North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) partners, especially the United States. Mexico was the first Latin American member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development OECD (since 1994). It is classified as an upper-middle income country by the World Bank and a newly industrialized country by several analysts. By 2050, Mexico could become the world's fifth or seventh largest economy. The country is considered both a regional power and middle power, and is often identified as an emerging global power. Due to its rich culture and history, Mexico ranks first in the Americas and sixth in the world by number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. In 2015 it was the tenth most visited country in the world, with 29.1 million international arrivals. Mexico is a member of the UN, the WTO, the G20, the Uniting for Consensus and is an observer of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie since 2014.

The contest will take place in the city of Mexico. The city of Mexico (Spanish: Ciudad de México, American Spanish: [sjuˈða(ð) ðe ˈméxiko]; abbreviated as "CDMX", referred to often in English as Mexico City) is the capital of the sovereign nation that is the United Mexican States. The city of Mexico is the country's largest city as well as its most important political, cultural, educational and financial center.

As an "alpha" global city Mexico City is one of the most important financial centers in the Americas. It is located in the Valley of Mexico (Valle de México), a large valley in the high plateaus at the center of Mexico, at an altitude of 2,240 metres (7,350 ft). The city consists of sixteen municipalities (previously called boroughs).

The 2009 estimated population for the city proper was around 8.84 million people, with a land area of 1,485 square kilometres (573 sq mi). According to the most recent definition agreed upon by the federal and state governments, the Greater Mexico City population is 21.2 million people, making it the largest metropolitan area in the western hemisphere, the tenth-largest agglomeration, and the largest Spanish-speaking city in the world.

The Greater Mexico City has a gross domestic product (GDP) of US$411 billion in 2011, making Mexico City urban agglomeration one of the economically largest metropolitan areas in the world. The city was responsible for generating 15.8% of Mexico's Gross Domestic Product and the metropolitan area accounted for about 22% of total national GDP. As a stand-alone country, in 2013, Mexico City would be the fifth-largest economy in Latin America—five times as large as Costa Rica's and about the same size as Peru's.

Mexico’s capital is both the oldest capital city in the Americas and one of two founded by Amerindians (Native Americans), the other being Quito. The city was originally built on an island of Lake Texcoco by the Aztecs in 1325 as Tenochtitlan, which was almost completely destroyed in the 1521 siege of Tenochtitlan, and subsequently redesigned and rebuilt in accordance with the Spanish urban standards. In 1524, the municipality of Mexico City was established, known as México Tenochtitlán, and as of 1585 it was officially known as Ciudad de México (Mexico City). Mexico City served as the political, administrative and financial center of a major part of the Spanish colonial empire. After independence from Spain was achieved, the Federal District was created in 1824.

After years of demanding greater political autonomy, residents were given the right to directly elect a Head of Government and the representatives of the unicameral Legislative Assembly by popular vote in 1997. Ever since, the left-wing Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD) has controlled both of them. In recent years, the local government has passed a wave of liberal policies, such as abortion on request, a limited form of euthanasia, no-fault divorce, and same-sex marriage. On January 29, 2016, it ceased to be called the Federal District (Spanish: Distrito Federal or D.F.) and is now in transition to become the country's 32nd federal entity, giving it a level of autonomy comparable to that of a state. Because of a clause in the Mexican Constitution, however, as the seat of the powers of the Union, it can never become a state, lest the capital of the country be relocated elsewhere.

## Venue

The venue of the 23rd edition is the Aztec Stadium. The Estadio Azteca (Spanish pronunciation: [esˈtaðjo asˈteka]) is a football stadium located in the suburb of Santa Úrsula in Mexico City, Mexico. Since its opening in 1966, the stadium has been the official home stadium of the professional football team Club América and the official national stadium of the Mexico national football team. With an official capacity of 95,500, it is the largest stadium in Mexico and the third largest football stadium in the world.

Regarded as one of the most famous and iconic football stadiums in the world, it is the first to have hosted two FIFA World Cup Finals. In the 1970 World Cup Final, Brazil defeated Italy 4–1, and in the 1986 World Cup Final, Argentina defeated West Germany 3–2. It also hosted the 1986 quarter-final match between Argentina and England in which Diego Maradona scored both the "Hand of God goal" and the "Goal of the Century". The stadium also hosted the "Game of the Century", when Italy defeated West Germany 4–3 in extra time in one of the 1970 semifinal matches.

The stadium was also the principal venue for the football tournament of the 1968 Summer Olympics.

The name "Azteca" is a tribute to the Aztec heritage of Mexico City. The stadium is now owned by Mexican TV consortium Televisa. In order to avoid people associating the stadium's name with that of its rival TV Azteca, Televisa officially changed the stadium's name to Guillermo Cañedo, a top executive, long-time football advocate at Televisa and prominent member of the executive committee of FIFA. The change took place in 1997, following Cañedo's death on 20 January 1997. However the change did not go well with the general population, who generally refused to refer to the stadium by its formally new name. Following a schism where two of Cañedo's sons, who worked at Televisa, switched camps and went to TV Azteca, Televisa quietly returned the stadium's name to its original version. Some people did not even notice, as they usually referred to the stadium as "Azteca" during the name change.

The stadium has been given the nickname "Coloso de Santa Ursula" which in English means "Colossus of Saint Ursula", due to its large structure. Santa Ursula refers to the part of town where the stadium resides in Mexico City.

## Participants

### Semifinal 1

15 countries took part in the first semi-final. Mexico, Norway and United Kingdom will vote in this semifinal. The top seven from this semifinal will qualify for the Grand Final. The 8th and 9th place countries will qualify for the Second Chance Round.

  Qualifiers Grand Final

  Qualifiers Second Chance Round

### Semifinal 2

15 countries will take part in the second semi-final. Canada, Mexico and the United Kingdom will vote in this semifinal. The top seven from this semifinal will qualify for the Grand Final. The 8th and 9th place countries will qualify for the Second Chance Round.

  Qualifiers Grand Final

  Qualifiers Second Chance Round

### Semifinal 3

15 countries will take part in the third semi-final. Canada, Mexico and Panama will vote in this semifinal. The top seven from this semifinal will qualify for the Grand Final. The 8th and 9th place countries will qualify for the Second Chance Round.

  Qualifiers Grand Final

  Qualifiers Second Chance Round

### Second Chance Round

6 countries will compete in the Second Chance Round. The top 2 from this round will qualify for the Grand Final.

  Qualifiers Grand Final

### Final

28 countries will compete in the Grand Final.