Eurovision’s Asia experiment gets under way in flamboyant Bangkok

Organisers hope extravagant attempt to transplant song contest will be a success

Thailand is about to get a glitz-infused injection of pop culture, with crews starting construction of a large stage in Bangkok as part of an extravagant attempt to transplant Eurovision to Asia.

Organisers have promised the world’s longest-running music competition will launch “a new chapter in Asia” next weekend, when 11 contestants from across the region will sing and dance for votes.

How much notice an Asian audience has shown in the experiment to replicate the beloved contest is yet to be seen, although organisers will hope it sets off a Eurovision-mania chain reaction. Several competitor countries, such as the Philippines and South Korea, already have avid Eurovision fanclubs.

Still, a week before the grand final ample tickets remained on sale for entry to the concert hall at One Bangkok Forum, which sits near the city’s celebrated Lumphini Park.

Eurovision’s official Instagram account has been promoting its Asian sister account to its 2.3m followers. So far, about 65,000 accounts have followed. Bulgaria’s Eurovision 2026 winner, Dara, is getting flown over to perform her electro-dance earworm, Bangaranga, during the interval.

Dean Vuletic, author of Postwar Europe and the Eurovision Song Contest, said the nascent show would face an uphill battle to “capture the attention and fascination of the local audience”.

Vuletic, an academic who taught the world’s first university course on Eurovision, attributed the contest’s extraordinary success in part because it emerged in the late 1950s during the rise of television, and at a period of postwar European integration. “So there’s a reason why Eurovision is peculiarly European, and why I think it would struggle to succeed elsewhere,” he said.

Another spin-off version, titled American Song Contest, received poor viewing figures in 2022, facing stiff competition from more established shows such as American Idol.

Despite his reservations, Vuletic travelled to Thailand for the final show. He said: “This is another chapter in that history that I think I have to see.”

In what appears to be an attempt to hold on to the name association of the world’s largest live music event, the show has not rebranded itself as “Asiavision” but gone with the spin-off title “Eurovision Song Contest Asia”, leading to some geographic confusion.

However, such regional melding is not unusual in Eurovision’s 70-year history. The competition is run by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which despite its name is not location-specific, meaning broadcasters outside Europe take part, including those from Israel and Australia. Next year’s Eurovision will feature a Canadian act for the first time.

In the rush to lock down competitors, not all of Asia is covered, with India and China absent. The 11 announced performers are from Bhutan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, the Philippines, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam.

The hosting nation’s own entrant is a collaboration including a solo female artist and local T-Pop (Thai Pop) star, Mang. She joins Daou, who gained national fame through winning a survival-style Thai TV show and his role in a short-lived boyband called LAZ1.

Anyone in the world can view the live show on YouTube, and even vote, although under a complex voting system their voice will not overrule national juries and public votes in participating countries. Eurovision onlookers have been wondering if political allegiances will affect results, as they have for the main event, where friendly neighbours often appear to engage in bloc voting. Thailand and Cambodia were at war last year, which could play out in the tallies on the night.

Eurovision attracts more than 100 million viewers every year. The competition has been overshadowed by accusations that Israel should be excluded over its war in Gaza. Critics say its continued inclusion is at odds with the banning of Russia after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and several broadcasters have pulled out.