Britain's entry Space Man by Sam Ryder placed second at this year's Eurovision in Turin, the country's best performance since 1998.

Ukrainian entry Stefania by Kalush Orchestra won the Song C, but the country is unable to stage the 2023 edition as is customary for the winner due to the invasion of Ukraine.

Britain is set to step in having finished second, and seven cities have made the shortlist from an initial 20 interested.

Capital city London, a three-time Olympic Games and four-time Eurovision host, and Northern Ireland's capital Belfast are among those who missed the cut.

The Commonwealth Games concluded in Birmingham on Monday (August 8), and the West Midlands city is targeting other major events in the future, with potential bids for the 2026 European Championships and future editions of the World Athletics Championships and Olympic Games mooted.

Birmingham held Eurovision the last time it was staged in Britain in 1998.

The National Exhibition Centre (NEC) Arena, which held netball matches at Birmingham 2022, is the city's proposed venue for the Song Contest.

Birmingham City Council leader Ian Ward claimed that the experience of the Commonwealth Games made Birmingham well-suited to host the event.

"We have demonstrated at the Commonwealth Games that we can put on these complicated, multi-venue, international events with style having successfully hosted what has been acclaimed as the best ever Commonwealth Games," Ward told the BBC.

"So we're looking forward now to moving on with the next phase of this competition and having the opportunity to welcome all of the countries of Europe to this city with the same style and the same vibe."

Guy Dunstan, the managing director of the NEC Group, echoed Ward's remarks.

"This is not just about the Arena, this is a city-wide bid, so all the squares, the Eurovision village, the fanzone," he told the BBC.

"All of that we've shown we've got the capability and the infrastructure to put on that event hopefully next year."

Among Birmingham's rivals for the Eurovision Song Contest is 2014 Commonwealth Games host city Glasgow and 2002 hosts Manchester.

The Manchester Arena is the biggest indoor venue in the United Kingdom with a capacity of around 21,000.

Sheffield, host of the 1991 Summer Universiade, 2019 Netball World Cup host Liverpool, Leeds and Newcastle are the other contenders.

The BBC has said the shortlist has been based on the cities demonstration that they have "the capacity, capability and experience to host an event of this scale and complexity", and that the process would be "heavily weighted towards demonstrating past experience in hosting major international events, as well as being able to demonstrate their credentials in hosting a celebration of contemporary music".

A decision by the BBC in conjunction with the European Broadcasting Union is expected in the European autumn.