CANDIDACY

The procedure for selecting a city as the next European Capital of Culture consists of two stages:

1. Pre-selection stage 
2. Selection stage

An international panel of 12 independent experts will assess each candidate city on the basis of the applications and hearings against the objectives and criteria of the European Capital of Culture. The names of the panel members will be published on the ECOC 2030 BE website one week before the pre-selection meeting. 

During the pre-selection stage, the panel will agree on a shortlist of candidate cities that will be invited to revise and complete their application for the final selection stage. During the final selection stage, the panel may visit the pre-selected cities.

After the final selection meeting, the panel will agree on the recommendation of one city for the title. Based on the panels recommendation, Belgium will designate one city to hold the title in 2030 and will notify the European Union.

Each application will be evaluated based on the eligibility criteria, award criteria and exclusion criteria. 

The award criteria are divided into six categories: 

1. Contribution to the long-term strategy
2. European dimension
3. Cultural and artistic content
4. Capacity to deliver
5. Outreach
6. Management

A detailed list of the criteria can be found in the Call for submission of applications.

The European Commission provides literature to help candidate cities prepare for candidacy.  

Interesting documents: 

• Guide for candidate cities
• Guide to financing the cultural and creative sectors 

Curious about the experiences of other European Capitals of Culture? The following website provides an overview of all European Capitals of Culture and some inside information: 

• Designated European Capitals of Culture 

All bidbooks from past candidate cities and titleholders can be found in the archive on the cultureNEXT website. 

To apply for the pre-selection, you must complete and submit the following two documents as part of the Call for submission of applications: 

• Application form (Annex 1) 
• Declaration of Honour by the applicant city (Annex 2) 

Both documents must be submitted by 17:00 on 2 September 2024.

All candidate cities must complete the common application form provided in Annex 1 of the Call for Submission. There are different questionnaires for the pre-selection and final selection stages.  

For the pre-selection, the application must meet the following requirements:

• All the questions listed in the common application form must be answered. Each section’s questions can be answered separately or jointly.
• The application can be written in English, Dutch, French, and German, with English being mandatory. If there are multiple linguistic versions, they must be identical in content and presentation. The English version of the application will be the working version for the panel. 
• The English version of the application should not exceed 60 pages in A4 format, including illustrations, graphics or any other visual elements (such as logos).  
• The application should be written in a font size no smaller than 10-point.

All candidate cities must complete and sign the Declaration of Honour provided in Annex 2 of the Call for Submission. It must be signed by an individual with the legal authority to represent the city, typically the mayor or a designated representative. 

The Declaration of Honour should be submitted together with the paper and digital application form. The declaration can be added to the application as a separate document.

Applications must be submitted by both email and hard copy before 17:00 on 2 September 2024.

Submit the following documents by email:

• PDF version of the application (1 PDF per language)
• Signed Declaration of Honour

Send or deliver the following hard copies:

• 20 copies of the application in English
• Signed Declaration of Honour

Address:

Secretariat ECOC 2030 BE Committee - Departement Cultuur, Jeugd en Media
Marie-Elisabeth Belpairegebouw
Simon Bolivarlaan 17
1000 Brussel

If you are delivering the hard copies in person, please leave them at the reception of the Marie-Elisabeth Belpaire building. Please inform us by email in advance so that we can notify the reception.

The pre-selection meeting will take place during the week of October 21st, 2024. Candidate cities will be invited to present their candidacies on October 21st, 22nd, or 23rd to a panel of international experts. On October 24th, the finalist cities will be announced by the chairperson of the panel during a press conference.

Location: 

 The pre-selection meeting will take place at the Royal Library of Belgium in Brussels, in the following rooms: 

• Panorama: Presentation and discussion of the candidature
• Corner: Waiting room for candidate cities
• Consilium: Deliberation room for the panel 

The press conference will be held in the auditorium of the Royal Library of Belgium.

Presentation and discussion of the candidature:

• Each city will have 30 minutes for its presentation, followed by a 60-minute discussion between the panel and the city.
• Each city can bring up to 10 people to present their candidature and can bring their own technician. The technician is not counted in the 10 people if he or she does not take part in the presentation. 
• The panel will be seated at a U-shaped table and will enter the room after the city has set up its presentation. 
• Interpreter cabins will be installed in the Panorama if a candidate city requests to give its presentation in Dutch, French, or German. 
• Multimedia equipment and Wi-Fi will be available.
• The Panorama is wheelchair accessible.

A detailed schedule for the pre-selection will be finalized after the cities have submitted their candidacies on September 2nd.