Eurovision Now Song Contest 1

## Eurovision Now Song Contest

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**1 •**  2 ►

**Eurovision Now Song Contest 1** , often referred to as **ESOGN #01** , was the first edition of Eurovision Now Contest, held in Rome, Italy. It was the first time Italy, had hosted the contest.

Twenty-three countries participated in the first contest. Paolo Meneguzzi from Switzerland won the contest with the song "Dentro Al Sogno" receiving a total of 84 points. Denmark finished in second place, with Israel finishing in third place. They were followed by Jersey which reached the fourth placed and Andorra, fifth place. The host country, Italy made it into the first half of the leader board, receiving 64 points and placing 9th .

The event took place in the 24th of August. The motto of the edition was "321start!".

## Venue

**PalaLottomatica**, formerly known as Palazzo dello Sport or PalaEUR, is a multi-purpose sports and entertainment arena in Rome, Italy. It is located in the heart of the well known modern EUR complex. The arena hosted the 1960 Olympic basketball tournaments.

The venue features 8 meetings points, a restaurant for 300 people, and a 2,700 square metre outdoor terrace. It has a seating capacity of 11,200 spectators for basketball games. The PalaLottomatica, together with Mediolanum Forum of Milan, is a member of the European Arenas Association

## Bidding Phase

After the formation of the **Eurovision Now Song Contest**, the Now European Broadcasting Union (NEBU) made a very weird choice on how to determine the host city of the first edition. The NEBU chose a letter randomly (R) and then they chose on of the capitals of the nation that could compete, that started with the chosen letter.

A total of four cities were selected as the candidates to host the contest: Reykjavik, Rhodes City, Riga and Rome. The basic requirements to select a host city and venue are the following:

* The host city had to provide a certain number of hotels and hotel rooms to be found in the vicinity of the stadium.
* The arena had to be able to offer lodges adjacent to the stadium.
* A press centre had to be available at the stadium that will have a specific size.
* Radiotelevisione italiana had to have access to the host venue at least 4–6 weeks before the broadcasts, in order to build the stage, rigging lights and all the technology.
* The host city had to be close to a major airport.

 Rhodes City
 Riga

## Host City

**Rome** is the capital city and a special *comune* of Italy, as well as the capital of the Lazio region. The city has been a major human settlement for almost three millennia. With 2,860,009 residents in 1,285 km2 (496.1 sq mi), it is also the country's most populated *comune*. It is the third most populous city in the European Union by population within city limits. It is the centre of the Metropolitan City of Rome, which has a population of 4,355,725 residents, thus making it the most populous metropolitan city in Italy. Its metropolitan area is the third-most populous within Italy. Rome is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, within Lazio (Latium), along the shores of the Tiber. Vatican City is an independent country inside the city boundaries of Rome, the only existing example of a country within a city; for this reason, Rome has sometimes been described as the capital of two states.

Rome's history spans 28 centuries. While Roman mythology dates the founding of Rome at around 753 BC, the site has been inhabited for much longer, making it one of the oldest continuously occupied cities in Europe. The city's early population originated from a mix of Latins, Etruscans, and Sabines. Eventually, the city successively became the capital of the Roman Kingdom, the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, and is regarded by many as the first-ever Imperial city and metropolis. It was first called *The Eternal City* by the Roman poet Tibullus in the 1st century BC, and the expression was also taken up by Ovid, Virgil, and Livy. Rome is also called "Caput Mundi" (Capital of the World). After the fall of the Empire in the west, which marked the beginning of the Middle Ages, Rome slowly fell under the political control of the Papacy, and in the 8th century, it became the capital of the Papal States, which lasted until 1870. Beginning with the Renaissance, almost all popes since Nicholas V pursued a coherent architectural and urban programme over four hundred years, aimed at making the city the artistic and cultural centre of the world. In this way, Rome became first one of the major centres of the Renaissance, and then the birthplace of both the Baroque style and Neoclassicism. Famous artists, painters, sculptors and architects made Rome the centre of their activity, creating masterpieces throughout the city. In 1871, Rome became the capital of the Kingdom of Italy, which, in 1946, became the Italian Republic.

In 2019, Rome was the 11th most visited city in the world with 10.1 million tourists, the third most visited in the European Union, and the most popular tourist destination in Italy. Its historic centre is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The host city for the 1960 Summer Olympics, Rome is also the seat of several specialised agencies of the United Nations, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization , the World Food Programme and the International Fund for Agricultural Development. The city also hosts the Secretariat of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean as well as the headquarters of many international business companies such as Eni, Enel, TIM, Leonardo S.p.A., and national and international banks such as Unicredit and BNL. Rome's EUR business district is the home of many companies involved in the oil industry, the pharmaceutical industry, and financial services. The presence of renowned international brands in the city has made Rome an important centre of fashion and design, and the Cinecittà Studios have been the set of many Academy Award–winning movies.

## Participants

Twenty-three countries participated in the contest's Grand Final. Italy, as the first host of the **ESOGN**, was the first country to perform, while The Netherlands were the last.

### Grand Final

\*Andorra 15 > Armenia 11, \*\*Luxembourg 10 and 2x12 > Georgia 10 and 1x12 > Rhodes 9, \*\*\*Slovakia 8, 1x12 and 2x10 > Greenland 8, 1x12 and 1x10

## Points

The countries voted the other way, with The Netherlands voting first and Italy voting last.

### 12 points

Below is a summary of the maximum 12 points each country awarded to another in the grand final.