Loud signal to Italian government as Torino wins EuroPride 2027
Pride organisations from across Europe have sent a strong message to the Italian government led by Georgia Meloni that the rollbacks on LGBTI+ equality and human rights must be stopped.
Coordinamento Torino Pride, which organises Pride in the historic Piedmontese city, was the clear winner in the competition to host the pan-European LGBTI+ event EuroPride in 2027. They took more than half of the vote, with competition from Pride in Gloucestershire (UK) who came second, Baltic Pride Vilnius (LT) who came third, and ACOGAT Torremolinos Pride (ES) who came fourth.
Torino’s bid focused heavily on the setbacks to the LGBTI+ community delivered by Meloni’s government, including on surrogacy and the rights of LGBTI+ parents. The bid included focus on LGBTI+ migrants, education and human rights. The bid was presented during the annual conference of the European Pride Organisers Association in Porto, Portugal, attended by more than 200 Pride organisers from across Europe.
Speaking after the announcement Alessandro Battaglia (he/him) of Coordinamento Torino Pride said:
“We have been working as a team on Torino’s bid since 2017 so, having succeeded in realizing this dream fills us with pride. The news of this historic moment reminds us that Prides are useful – even necessary – and they should continue to exist, get more numerous and with more participation. And it is precisely in this geopolitical scenario that EuroPride’s relevance gets crucial.
For seven years now, Torino Pride has been part of EPOA because we strongly believe in its strength, enabling political, cultural and practical exchanges among organisations fighting for LGBTQI+ rights throughout Europe. Issues that would otherwise risk being ‘caged’ within national borders can gain an international-scale media echo. The international gaze of activists across Europe and the media power of a EuroPride are often the necessary leverage at a local level to obtain attention and rights. Turin is a beautiful and welcoming city and so is Italy, even if dramatically backward in terms of rights. We now look forward to 2027 to make – together with you – this situation change.”
Patrick Orth (he/him), President of the European Pride Organisers Association, said:
“This is a stunning victory for Torino Pride and it is testament to the quality and thoughtfulness of their bid. The political landscape in Italy has changed so significantly in the last two years and LGBTI+ people must be protected. EuroPride Torino 2027 will be an important opportunity for us to come together and show our unity and strength.”
“This is only the fourth time in our history that there have been four bids for EuroPride, and all four were of an exceptionally high quality. I want to thank all the bidding organisations for the huge work they contributed in recent months to develop their bids. There has to be only one winner but we hope the other bidders will consider running again in the future.”
EuroPride began in London in 1992 and takes place in a different European city each year. EuroPride 2024 was in Thessaloniki (GR), in 2025 it will be in Lisbon (PT) and in 2026 in Amsterdam (NL) as part of WorldPride.