These are days of great trepidation in Portugal. The visits of the evaluation panel to the four cities of Portugal that have entered the short list to become European Capital of Culture for 2027 start today.

The president of european panel for the pre-selection of ECoC applicants in Portugal, Beatriz Garcia, announced the names of the cities that will continue the race to become the European capital of culture in 2027 for Portugal in a press conference this afternoon. Four cities have entered the short list: Aveiro, Braga, Évora, Ponta Delgada

In accordance with the calendar set out in the Annex to the Decision, in 2027 the European Capital of Culture will be given the name of one Latvian and one Portuguese city. For Latvia, this is the second opportunity to give the name of the European Capital of Culture to one of the cities. In short list there are four cities: Valmiera, Liepāja, Daugavpils, Jūrmala. Portugal had 3 European Capitals of Culture: Lisbon, in 1994, Porto, in 2001, and Guimarães, in 2012.

The successful path of Matera 2019 and in particular its ability to involve the living strenght of the territory, stimulating the active participation of the public, were the focus of an online meeting dedicated to the teams of the Portuguese cities competing for the title of European capital of culture 2027.