‘A place where music fills the air’: Bangkok to host Eurovision’s first Asia song contest

Spin-off launched with 10 nations, as original event remains mired in protests and boycotts over Israel’s involvement

Eurovision is seeking to expand into the Asian market by hosting a version of its song contest in Bangkok this year, just as the original annual event is being buffeted by discord and boycotts on the eve of its 70th anniversary edition.

The grand final of the inaugural Eurovision song contest Asia will take place in Thailand’s capital on Saturday 14 November, the Switzerland-based organisation announced on Tuesday. Broadcasters from 10 countries have confirmed their participation.

The countries taking part – South Korea, Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan – will each choose their entries via national finals in the months leading up to the event.

“As we mark the 70th anniversary of the Eurovision song contest, it feels especially meaningful to open this next chapter with Asia, a region rich in culture, creativity and talent”, said Martin Green CBE, director of the Eurovision song contest at the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).

“This is about evolving Eurovision together with Asia, building something that reflects the voices, identities and ambitions of the region, while staying true to what has always made the contest special.”

Chuwit Sirivajjakul, a representative of the Thailand Tourism Authority, said Bangkok was the perfect city to host the contest because it “has always been a place where cultures come together, where music fills the air, and where celebration is part of everyday life.”

An American version backed by Eurovision’s producers, titled American Song Contest and aired on NBC in 2022, was hit by Covid restrictions and garnered under 3 million viewers, less than that year’s episode of the long-running American Idol.

Organisers of the Asian spin-off, which retains the word “Eurovision” in the title in spite of its location on another continent, hope the song contest will bring together a more culturally diverse region, with participating countries representing more than 600 million people.

An Asian version of the musical extravaganza also including China, Japan and Taiwan was previously announced by EBU in 2008 but plans were later discarded.

In South Korea, the event’s organisers have secured one of the undisputed powerhouses of global pop, whose K-pop artists such as BTS, Stray Kids and Jung Kook achieve tens of millions of monthly streams on music platforms worldwide. The soundtrack to the Netflix film KPop Demon Hunters was the second most streamed album on Spotify in 2025.

Eurovision’s main gala, run by the EBU, draws more than 100 million viewers every year, making it the world’s largest live music event.

The last two editions of the event have been marked by protests over Israel’s continued inclusion in spite of its war on Gaza, which critics say is at odds with Russia’s exclusion over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Some nations have also accused Israel of manipulating the public voting system during the 2025 contest held in Switzerland, where it finished second behind Austria.

The Israeli broadcaster Kan welcomed the decision to keep Israel in the contest, rejecting allegations of political interference. Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog, said Israel “deserves to be represented on every stage around the world”.

Strictly speaking, Eurovision is a contest not between countries but national broadcasters who are full or associate members of the EBU, meaning countries not located in Europe such as Australia or Morocco have taken part in the past.

This year’s 70th anniversary event, taking place in Vienna on 16 May, is being boycotted by Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Spain due to Israel being given the all-clear to compete.

Irish broadcaster RTÉ said its participation would be “unconscionable given the appalling loss of lives in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there”.

It remains to be seen whether the Asian version of the song contest can dodge regional disputes that have been a feature of the original Eurovision through the ages. Long-running tensions between participants Thailand and Cambodia erupted in July 2025, where at least 48 people were killed and more than 300,000 people were displaced during five days of fighting.

The brief war ended with a fragile peace deal signed in Malaysia in October, but tensions remain high, with more deadly clashes erupting in December.