Visa Europe has been announced as an Official Partner of the Eurovision Song Contest 2016.
Visa will be preferred payment partner for the event which will take place in Stockholm in May.
Visa will create a contactless payments experience for the audience attending the Final and Semi-Finals of the Contest as well as visitors to the Eurovision Village at Kungsträdgården in Stockholm.
Mark Antipof, Chief Officer, Sales & Marketing at Visa Europe, said: “The Eurovision Song Contest is a massively popular event across Europe with television viewing figures in the hundreds of millions and a major draw for visitors to the host city.
“We’re delighted to be sponsoring this year’s Contest and to enable those attending in Stockholm to experience the speed and convenience of contactless payments. Together with key stakeholders Visa Europe will be creating contactless acceptance across the Eurovision venues as well as showcasing the technology of contactless payments other contactless experiences.”
Jon Ola Sand, Executive Supervisor of the Eurovision Song Contest, added: “We are pleased to welcome the world’s number one payment provider, Visa, as a sponsor of the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest. Visa Europe has an established track record sponsoring some of the biggest events in the world, which makes us even more proud to have them on board.”
The Eurovision Song Contest 2016 marks the 61st anniversary of the first Contest, and is set out to be the largest event thus far, reaching 200 million television viewers across the world. The 2016 Contest will open with Semi-Finals on 10 and 12 May with the Grand Final being held on 14 May at the Globe Arena in Stockholm.