Eurovision Song Contest at the Joggeli-Halle in Basel (Switzerland) from May 13 – 17, 2025

After Nemo won the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) in Malmö with the song “The Code”, the 69th contest will take place under the motto “United By Music” from May 13 to 17, 2025 in the St. Jakobshalle in Basel. The slogan created by the BBC in 2023 was chosen as the permanent Eurovision slogan. After 1956 with Lys Assia in Lugano and 1988 with Céline Dion in Lausanne, it would be the third time the ESC has been held in Switzerland. The first semi-final is scheduled for May 13, the second for May 15 and the final for May 17, 2025.

thebroker talks to Thomas Kastl, managing director of the event hall affectionately known as “Joggeli” by the people of Basel.

Congratulations, Thomas Kastl! On August 30, you learned that Basel had prevailed against Geneva and was bringing the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) to the city on the Rhine. What was your reaction?

Thank you very much! It was a crazy day. A huge number of people in Basel worked incredibly hard, often through the night, to submit the bid. August 30, which we had been waiting for with almost unbearable excitement, was a very special day for me, as I was on vacation on a boat off the Croatian coast. I had only sporadic internet access there. I was a few seconds late waiting for the countdown and a radio station called to congratulate me.

The ESC is the biggest event of its kind in the world. After Basel as a city, the hall and the house had to endure a lot of negative media coverage, we can now show what we, our team and I, as the person responsible for the hall, are capable of. I feel extremely privileged to be here and to be able to experience this, and I have a great deal of respect for what lies ahead.

Did you have to postpone or cancel other events after Basel was awarded the title, because the hall cannot be used for other purposes during the two months?

No, because we were lucky enough to recognize very early on what might happen. Except for the annual general meeting of a major bank and a few one-day events, we were able to respond positively to all requests outside of these two months. Even the police handball championship could be postponed, since the police officers and policewomen will not have time anyway because of the ESC.

Do you think that the referendum of the Federal Democratic Union (EDU) regarding the credit of almost 35 million Swiss francs for the Eurovision Song Contest 2025, which the Basel electorate would vote on November 24, 2024, will come about?

A difficult question, as in my job I try to stay out of politics. In summary, if it were to come about, it would be the fairest evaluation criterion, since the people of Basel would decide, as the money ultimately belongs to them. With regard to the vote on the Roger Federer Arena, I believe that the signatures might be collected, but that the referendum will not be accepted. If you look at the 60 to 70 million added value that other cities that hosted the ESC before us have generated, I believe that no majority will be found against hosting it.

Do we still have to expect that the ESC will not take place in Basel and that certain things that need to be done today will therefore be postponed?

No, that wouldn’t be possible, because nine months is a very short time for an event of this magnitude. We are working at full speed for the St. Jakobshalle and the area for which I am responsible. I also don’t think that a negative vote would prevent the event.

What requirements does Swiss television SRF have for you and the hall? These were part of the dossier for the award.

The expectations and ideas are enormous. We will find out about these in detail shortly and will then go into a workshop lasting several days. It should also be noted that we only recently found out that the ESC will be taking place here. Our entire area, every square centimeter of it, will be available for this event for almost eight weeks.

Of course, we have to expand our entire team. In addition, the hall is celebrating the best-booked event period in the history of the St. Jakobs-Halle without the ESC, with a sold-out Bryan Adams concert, a Laura Pausini concert, sold-out European Dart Tour events and much more. Besides, we also have to focus on our existing customers, such as the Swiss Indoors, the CHI or a high jump world championship by CHI immediately before the ESC.

thebroker is the online news platform for topics from the Insurance Industry. Therefore, we would like to know which insurance policies need to be taken out for the event.

I can’t answer this question in detail, that’s what the experts from the hall owner, the city of Basel, are for. In a first round, the existing insurance policies were deemed sufficient. However, it is being examined in detail whether the existing insurance policies are sufficient. I can well imagine that the first statement is correct, because whether at a Bryan Adams concert, a Swiss Indoors or the ESC, if there are 9,000 people in the hall, the amount of damage will not be many times greater.

Which insurance policies does the SRG take out and which does the city of Basel take out?

As a non-insurance expert, I can’t answer that and I haven’t been informed about it yet. This will also be one of the topics to be discussed. We are in a very close partnership situation, which is new for us. This also has many advantages, since two large organizations and many professionals from each area take care of the individual topics.

What about the security concept? What do you have to do as the manager of the Joggeli-Halle, and what will the police do?

As usual, not everything will be revealed for security reasons. However, you can assume that it will be by far the most complex security concept that we have ever applied. Many responsibilities lie with the police and many with us. Where exactly the dividing line is will be determined in the next few weeks. It can be assumed that the cooperation between the Basel-Landschaft and Basel-Stadt police forces and us will be good, as we have already gained experience with major events, such as the Dalai Lama’s visit. The police forces of the two half-cantons are involved because the hall is located in the canton of Basel-Landschaft, but belongs to the canton of Basel-Stadt.

Will the area be cordoned off on a large scale and what does that mean for local residents?

I am not aware of any residents who will suffer inconvenience due to the cordons, except possibly long-term tenants of the parking garage who could be affected. There will be restrictions on sports, for example so-called “parent taxis” when parents drive their children to sports. However, we will communicate this widely and in good time.

Is there a kind of chief of staff for the entire event, and where is the interface of responsibility between SRG and the hall or stadium?

With Beat Läuchli, the owner and managing director of Belco Consulting GmbH based in Basel, the host city of Basel has found an experienced event manager as overall project manager for the ESC 2025, whose choice I very much welcome.

Of course, there is an organizational chart for the various responsibilities, such as the “Main Venue” at St. Jakob-Park and one at Messe Basel, for all the topics involved. Overall responsibility lies with the overall project manager. At the moment, I can’t say where the boundaries between the SRG and the city lie. This will become clear in the coming days and weeks. I suspect that they will be relatively fluid.

Is the effort involved very great compared to a Eurovision event such as “Wetten dass…”?

From what I can tell today, the comparison is very good. In terms of production, “Wetten dass…” was, together with “Musikantenstadl”, perhaps the biggest thing that has taken place in our country. However, I have to say that with the addition of a TV studio for tens of millions of viewers, the ESC will be a completely different kind of event than a concert, a general assembly or a major world or European championship.

“Wetten dass..?” was very special because it had a relatively long setup time of 12 days. ZDF brought everything itself and even created all the stage props on site. Sixty overseas containers were delivered for the studio alone. And yet I would say that the ESC is not just a difference, but a huge, indescribable difference. My gut feeling is that it’s a factor of 10.

Last year, despite “United by Music”, there was anti-Semitism and booing of Israeli singer Eden Golan. Is it possible to protect yourself from this at all, and if so, how?

I also noticed this during the broadcast. I don’t think you can protect yourself from it completely. There are blatant examples of how UEFA or FIFA try to protect their sponsors by not allowing any other logos in the room. Sometimes it’s even forbidden to wear an Adidas T-shirt when Nike is the sponsor. But even there, those who want to show it anyway succeed again and again. I don’t think that you can dictate to all visitors what they think politically or when they should shout “boo!” at the events that will take place here (two semi-finals and the final event).

The police will be responsible for security staff with regard to political statements on banners or the wearing of Palestinian scarves and the like, and precautions will be taken.

The ESC requires a huge technical effort. What part do you have to do (sound, stage, grandstand, lighting, escape routes for performers and audience, etc.)?

We will find out the details in the next few weeks. However, what the consumer sees on TV – which artist is on stage with which lighting, video wall, decoration, etc. – will certainly be provided exclusively by SRG and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).

In principle, you can say that we provide the shell, and we are responsible for its functionality (air, electricity, toilets, water, cleanliness or a team that is there in case of a possible evacuation, etc.). To illustrate: there are 558 doors in the building. The stage could be from us. We provide the stage for 98 percent of all events. However, the stage may be so specialized that it has to rotate or descend, and we only contribute parts or nothing at all.

Who is responsible for the catering?

Our philosophy is: from the region, for the region. We have issued a legally valid call for tenders, and a system has been chosen that has so far proved satisfactory for all customers. We will work with SRG to determine which caterer is responsible for which area.

The performers, commentators and journalists usually arrive in Basel a week before the broadcasts. When do the rehearsals begin?

I can only answer your question to the extent that the time aspect will certainly be a longer and more complex one. I would prefer to answer the question of when the performers will arrive only after I know whether I can answer this at all from the point of view of the security concept. The rehearsal effort, with and without the performers, is significantly earlier.

Can you tell us the prices for the final at the Joggeli-Halle and at the St. Jakob Stadium next door, which will also show the events on big screens and thus allow a large increase in the number of spectators?

Tickets cannot be bought at the moment. Therefore, the prices are not yet known. The first tickets are expected to come onto the market before the end of this year. You can find the latest information here.

Although it has been said that the Joggeli-Halle may be a bit too small, there is a possibility that we will have the same number of spectators as last time in Malmö, where there was room for 9,000 people. According to our submitted layout, the hall can even fit 9,400 spectators. But that depends on what the SRG builds over.

How many public events will there be around the ESC?

A total of nine events will go on sale, including three events live on TV. The main venue for the nine shows is the St. Jakobshalle in Basel. An “Arena Plus” will also be set up in St. Jakob-Park on the day of the final, which will be more than just a public viewing. The stadium will have a festival atmosphere with family events and concerts by former ESC stars. During the show, the “Arena Plus” will interact with the main show via mutual live broadcasts.

A comprehensive accompanying program is also planned in the city for fans and the general public. This includes the Eurovision Village with public viewings and a music program, as well as the EuroClub for party guests on the premises of Messe Basel. Furthermore, a Eurovision Street is planned in Steinenvorstadt, and there will also be various events along the Kleinbasel bank of the Rhine and on Barfüsserplatz.

Will the two semi-finals also be shown in the football stadium?

No.

thebroker.ch

Also read: FeelGPT & AppTone: AI and Voice Analysis Tools for Fraud Detection in the Insurance Industry