Eurovision organisers have confirmed exclusively to The Euro Trip that there are no plans to hold a sanctioned version of the contest in Asia. 

On Monday, footage taken from a broadcast on Bhutanese network BBS circulated online, purportedly showing a selection show for the Eurovision Song Contest Asia. 

One of the show’s hosts – speaking in English – said that the first edition of Eurovision Song Contest Asia would take place later this year in Mumbai, India. 

Speculation that a spin-off show could be imminent grew when Vietnamese broadcaster HTV allocated a time slot on one of its channels on August 31 to “Eurovision Asia”. 

But this speculation has been categorically shut down by Eurovision organisers. 

In a statement given to The Euro Trip, Martin Green CBE, Director of the Eurovision Song Contest, said: “Earlier this week a broadcaster in Bhutan broadcast a selection show for Eurovision Song Contest Asia. 

“Our format rights holders in Asia have spoken to them and the episodes have now been taken off air and deleted from online platforms. 

“While it is no secret that we would love to see an edition of the Eurovision Song Contest in Asia, no plans have been confirmed or announced to date.” 

After Eurovision’s new brand identity was unveiled last week, Martin Green told The Euro Trip that expansion of the Eurovision family of events wasn’t out of the realms of possibility.

“What we’ve done with the brand is that we’ve made sure that if we ever choose to do a new continental versions… there’s a way of bringing it all into the same brand family.

“It [expansion] shouldn’t be off the table.

“But that doesn’t mean we’re actually doing them.”

The Euro Trip has contacted BBS for comment.