Rai vs Sanremo: Italy’s Favourite Festival Faces a Soap Opera of Its Own

Move over, telenovelas – the real drama in Italy right now isn’t on screen, it’s behind the scenes of the country’s most sacred TV event: the Sanremo Music Festival. Yes, that Sanremo, the one that launched international stars, fuelled Eurovision dreams and made the whole of Italy argue over sequin choices for decades.

The latest scandal? A spectacular tug-of-war between Rai, the public broadcaster, and the Sanremo City Council, which threatens to derail the festival’s future from 2026 onwards. The stakes are as high as a tenor’s falsetto, and the tone is anything but harmonious.

The 1% Advertising War (Yes, 1% Matters)

The city of Sanremo, emboldened by a court ruling forcing a public tender, now demands 1% of all advertising revenue from the festival. A tiny percentage, you might think, but for Rai it’s as acceptable as sending pineapple pizza to Naples.

The broadcaster is equally furious about Sanremo’s insistence on owning the festival’s brand and format, something Rai considers practically blasphemous. After all, without Rai’s decades of glitzy TV magic, Sanremo would be “just another regional singing contest,” or so Rai politely hinted (translation: “good luck hosting it without us, darlings”).

Deadline Drama and Plan B

A “friendly” phone call – as Italian diplomacy goes – set a deadline: 1 August. If no agreement is reached, Rai is ready to pack its rhinestones and take the festival elsewhere, cheekily rebranding it as the “Festival della Canzone Rai.”

The cities already circling like stylish vultures include Turin, Milan, Viareggio, Rimini and Naples. Imagine the horror in Sanremo if Italy’s most iconic music festival suddenly decamped to, say, Rimini, with beach umbrellas instead of roses.

Sanremo Without Rai? Cue the Melodrama

The very idea of Sanremo without Rai feels like cooking pasta without salt – technically possible, but absolutely tragic. For now, both sides remain locked in a stand-off that’s more dramatic than any song about forbidden love.

One thing is certain: whether it stays in Sanremo or relocates, Italy will be glued to its screens in February 2026 – if only to see who blinks first.

Source: Il sole 24 ore