„Opening Ceremony“ of the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 from the Eurovision Village at Vienna City Hall Square
The grand „Opening Ceremony“ is the spectacular start of the Eurovision Song Contest. It takes place on Sunday, May 10, 2026, at Vienna City Hall Square – and from 4:55 PM in "Welcome to Vienna – The ESC Opening„ live on ORF 1 and ORF ON. On the “Turquoise Carpet," all 35 delegations proceed from the Burgtheater towards City Hall – welcomed by up to 15,000 fans and numerous media representatives from around the world. Fanny Stapf and Max Bauer will host the show from the ORF Glass Studio, while Philipp Maschl and Tina Ritschl capture voices and impressions from acts and the audience. The ORF Radio Symphony Orchestra Vienna, conducted by Christian Kolonovits, will provide a festive reception, featuring arrangements of Austrian ESC winning songs. The Woodstock Allstar Band will welcome each delegation with a musical quote from their country before they are officially greeted at Vienna City Hall. The „Opening Ceremony“ marks the start of the ESC week for this year's participants and simultaneously opens the Eurovision Village for fans at Vienna City Hall Square.
For the ORF audience, the broadcast "Welcome to Vienna – The ESC Opening" heralds more than 100 hours of live programming from the ORF Glass Studio at Vienna City Hall Square, with contributions from ORF 1, ORF 2, ORF III, Ö1, Ö3, FM4, ORF Vienna, and ORF Lower Austria.
Photos of the event will be available throughout Sunday evening at this link: https://www.picdrop.com/orf/peVudE9ADQ
The program in the Eurovision Village on May 10
On Sunday, May 10, the ESC show week 2026 will be officially opened with the „Opening Ceremony“ (entry at 2:00 PM, live from 4:55 PM on ORF 1) in the Eurovision Village at Vienna City Hall Square. The Eurovision Village will be set in motion starting at 2:00 PM with „The Great ESC Singalong“ featuring Monika Ballwein & The Voices of Volunteers and Ö3 presenter Sylvia Graf with her stage DJ Manuel Winkler. Around 4:00 PM, Austria's ESC star COSMÓ will give a dance lesson to collectively earn the „dance certificate.“ Following the opening festivities, Austria's former ESC participant Eric Papilaya & The Good Vibe Tribe, as well as Eurodance legend Haddaway, will ensure a good mood from around 7:00 PM, followed by a public viewing of "Udo Jürgens: The Last Concert – Zurich 2014" (around 9:30 PM). In the Eurovision Village, a strict no-bag policy will be enforced on May 10 and also on the final day, May 16. Bags, backpacks, fanny packs, and handbags are strictly prohibited. Only small personal items like wallets, phones, and keys, as well as transparent containers up to the size of A6, are allowed.
(May 09, 2026)