Eurovision Now Song Contest 2

## European Autonomous Region Song Contest

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**Eurovision Now Song Contest 2**, often referred to as **ESOGN #2**, was the second edition of Eurovision Now Song Contest, held in Bern, Switzerland following Paolo Meneguzzi's win in the last edition in Rome. It was the first time Switzerland, had hosted the contest.

Thirty-two countries confirmed their participation in the contest. Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Germany, Gibraltar, Latvia, Moldova, Poland, Shetland, Slovenia, Spain, Svalbard, Sweden, Ukraine and Wales made their debut, while Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, England, Greenland, Iceland, Luxembourg, Montenegro and Rhodes withdrew from the contest.

The second winner of Eurovision Now Song Contest was Patricia Kazadi from Poland with the song "Przerywam Sen" receiving a total of 142 points only one point ahead of Azerbaijan, who finished in second place. Latvia followed by finishing in third place, while Serbia finished fourth and Czech Republic fifth.

Jersey (6th) was the only member of the "Big Six" to make it into the top 10, while Armenia finished 11th (79 points). However out of the 22 countries who made it into the final, the remaining four of the "Big Six", Andorra, Switzerland, Denmark and Israel failed to make it into the top half of the leader board coming 13th (73 points), 18th (53 points), 19th (48 points) and 20th (46 points) respectively.

## Venue

The **Wankdorf Stadium** (German: ***Stadion Wankdorf***; between 2005 and 2020 known as **Stade de Suisse**) is a football stadium in Bern, Switzerland. The second largest all-seater football stadium in Switzerland, it currently serves as the home ground of the Swiss football team BSC Young Boys. It was also one of the venues used during the UEFA Euro 2008.

The venue has also hosted concerts, for well known artists, such Bon Jovi in 31 May 2006, AC/DC in 8 June 2010, and P!nk in 10 July 2010.

A peculiar feature of the Wankdorf Stadium is the presence of a single, red seat (the other seats are black and yellow). This was the first seat installed at the stadium, on 20 January 2005, and the honour of unveiling it was given to former Young Boys player and manager Walter Eich. There are no tickets available for this seat; every game the seat is occupied by a notable personality, often with ties to Young Boys.

## Bidding Phase

NEBU announced the conditions announced the conditions under which cities and venues had announced their interest in hosting the 2nd contest:

* 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.
* Swiss Broadcasting Corporation 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.

 Lugano
 Zurich

## Host City

**Bern** or **Berne** is the de facto capital of Switzerland, referred to by the Swiss as their "federal city" (in German: *Bundesstadt*, French: *ville fédérale*, and Italian: *città federale*). With a population of about 144,000 (as of 2020), Bern is the fifth-most populous city in Switzerland.

Bern is also the capital of the canton of Bern, the second-most populous of Switzerland's cantons. The official language in Bern is (the Swiss variety of Standard) German, but the most-spoken language is an Alemannic Swiss German dialect, Bernese German. In 1983, the historic old town (in German: *Altstadt*) in the centre of Bern became a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

No archaeological evidence that indicates a settlement on the site of today's city centre prior to the 12th century has been found so far. In antiquity, a Celtic *oppidum* stood on the *Engehalbinsel* (peninsula) north of Bern, fortified since the second century BC (late La Tène period), thought to be one of the 12 *oppida* of the Helvetii mentioned by Caesar. During the Roman era, a Gallo-Roman *vicus* was on the same site. The Bern zinc tablet has the name *Brenodor* ("dwelling of Breno"). In the Early Middle Ages, a settlement in Bümpliz, now a city district of Bern, was some 4 km (2 mi) from the medieval city.

The medieval city is a foundation of the Zähringer ruling family, which rose to power in Upper Burgundy in the 12th century. According to 14th-century historiography (*Cronica de Berno*, 1309), Bern was founded in 1191 by Berthold V, Duke of Zähringen. In 1218, after Berthold died without an heir, Bern was made a free imperial city by the *Goldene Handfeste* of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II.

In 1353, Bern joined the Swiss Confederacy, becoming one of the eight cantons of the formative period of 1353 to 1481. Bern invaded and conquered Aargau in 1415 and Vaud in 1536, as well as other smaller territories, thereby becoming the largest city-state north of the Alps; by the 18th century, it comprised most of what is today the canton of Bern and the canton of Vaud.

The city grew out towards the west of the boundaries of the peninsula formed by the river Aare. The *Zytglogge* tower marked the western boundary of the city from 1191 until 1256, when the *Käfigturm* took over this role until 1345. It was, in turn, succeeded by the *Christoffelturm* (formerly located close to the site of the modern-day railway station) until 1622. During the time of the Thirty Years' War, two new fortifications – the so-called big and small *Schanze* (entrenchment) – were built to protect the whole area of the peninsula.

After a major blaze in 1405, the city's original wooden buildings were gradually replaced by half-timbered houses and subsequently the sandstone buildings which came to be characteristic for the Old Town. Despite the waves of pestilence that hit Europe in the 14th century, the city continued to grow, mainly due to immigration from the surrounding countryside.

Bern was occupied by French troops in 1798 during the French Revolutionary Wars, when it was stripped of parts of its territories. It regained control of the Bernese Oberland in 1802, and following the Congress of Vienna of 1814, it newly acquired the Bernese Jura. At this time, it once again became the largest canton of the Confederacy as it stood during the Restoration and until the secession of the canton of Jura in 1979. Bern was made the Federal City (seat of the Federal Assembly) within the new Swiss federal state in 1848.

A number of congresses of the socialist First and Second Internationals were held in Bern, particularly during World War I when Switzerland was neutral.

The city's population rose from about 5,000 in the 15th century to about 12,000 by 1800 and to above 60,000 by 1900, passing the 100,000 mark during the 1920s. Population peaked during the 1960s at 165,000 and has since decreased slightly, to below 130,000 by 2000. As of September 2017, the resident population stood at 142,349, of which 100,000 were Swiss citizens and 42,349 (31%) resident foreigners. A further estimated 350,000 people live in the immediate urban agglomeration.

## Participants

Thirty-two countries confirmed their participation in the contest. Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Germany, Gibraltar, Latvia, Moldova, Poland, Shetland, Slovenia, Spain, Svalbard, Sweden, Ukraine and Wales made their debut in the 2nd contest.

Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, England, Greenland, Iceland, Luxembourg, Montenegro and Rhodes withdrew from the contest.

### Semi-finals

#### Semi-final 1

* the first semi-final took place in Bern on 19 November 2013.
* the eight countries in this semi-final with the highest scoring points, according to the votes from each voting country, qualified for the final.
* Armenia, Israel and Jersey voted in this semi-final.

#### Notes

1. The Netherlands received points from 13 countries, while Czech Republic received points from 11 countries.

#### Semi-final 2

* the second semi-final took place in Bern on 21 November 2013.
* the eight countries in this semi-final with the highest scoring points, according to the votes from each voting country, qualified for the final
* Andorra, Denmark and Switzerland voted in this semi-final.

#### Notes

1. Sweden received points from 11 countries, while Georgia received points from 9 countries and Slovakia received points from 8 countries.

### Grand Final

* the grand final took place on 23 November 2013 in Bern.
* a total of 22 countries participated.
* the 8 countries that qualified from the first semi-final.
* the 8 countries that qualified from the second semi-final.
* the big six: Switzerland, Denmark, Israel, Jersey, Andorra and Armenia.

#### Notes

1. Shetland received points from 14 countries, while Andorra received points from 12 countries.

## Final Rank Order

This is the final ranking order of all the contestants.

### Notes

1. ^
2. ^
3. Svalbard received points from 12 countries, while Spain received points from 11 countries.