Choosing a Capital
The order, given below, was decided in agreement with the Member States and laid down in the Decision on the European Capital of Culture 2007-19 – 1622/2006/EC
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2007 Luxembourg and Romania |
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2008 United Kingdom |
2009 Austria and Lithuania |
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2010 Germany and Hungary |
2011 Finland and Estonia |
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2012 Portugal and Slovenia |
2013 France and Slovakia |
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2014 Sweden and Latvia |
2015 Belgium and Czech Republic |
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2016 Spain and Poland |
2017 Denmark and Cyprus |
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2018 Netherlands and Malta |
2019 Italy and Bulgaria |
Selection procedure for Capitals of Culture in 2013 and beyond
Under the new procedure – which entered into force in early 2007 and applies to the 2013 title and subsequent titles – host countries are responsible for selecting a city.
The relevant authorities in the host countries publish a call for applications 6 years before their turn to host.
Cities interested in winning the title must submit their proposal by replying to a questionnaire, within around 10 months.
Pre-selection – a panel of independent experts in the cultural field meets approximately 5 years before the year to assess the initial proposals against the criteria and to issue a short list of cities (pre-selection). The short-listed cities are invited to submit more detailed applications.
Final selection – the panel meets approximately 9 months after the pre selection meeting to assess the final proposals against the criteria and to recommend one city per host country for the title.
Submission of applications
Pre–selection
Final selection
Below, you will find a chronological summary of the designation stages:
Timeline (in years, n being the year of the event starting 1 January) |
Body responsible |
Stage in the procedure |
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n-6 (for example, end of 2006 for the 2013 title) |
Member State (MS) |
Call for applications |
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n-6+10 months |
Candidate Cities |
Deadline for responding to the call for applications |
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n-5 (for example, end of 2007 for the 2013 title) |
Member State (MS) |
Meeting of the panel for a pre-selection in the MS concerned => list of pre-selected cities (13 experts) |
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n-5 + 9 months |
Member State (MS) |
Meeting of the panel for the final selection in the MS concerned (13 experts) |
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n-4 (for example, end of 2008 for the 2013 title) |
Member State (MS) |
Notification of the application from a city to the European Institutions |
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n-4 + 3 months |
European Parliament |
Opinion of the European Parliament on this application |
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|
EU Council of Ministers |
Designation of the European Capital of Culture |
Selection Procedure for Capitals of Culture in 2011 and 2012
The Governments of the host countries were required to present applications for one or more cities to the European Parliament, Council, Commission and Committee of the Regions at least 4 years in advance – with the option of recommending a particular city.
Consequently, cities interested in the title had to contact the national authorities to inform them of their wish to apply and provide them with their proposal.
