Overview
- De Martino used the Rai palinsesti presentation in Ancona on Friday to unveil a five-night Festival di Sanremo set for 16–20 February 2027 and a new Friday 'performance' evening that will name Italy’s Eurovision representative.
- Under the proposed nightly layout, all competing artists will perform their new songs on Tuesday and Wednesday, Thursday will be dedicated to cover versions, and Friday will let acts restage their entry as a live-style performance with full Ariston technical support.
- De Martino said he has already received a large number of submissions and is considering cutting the total number of competing songs to give more time to staging and to the festival’s narrative.
- Rai and De Martino are actively pursuing international guests to raise Sanremo’s profile, with no names confirmed yet, and he called the presence of stars such as Vasco Rossi a long-held dream.
- The changes follow a generational handover in Sanremo leadership and signal a push to modernize the show’s production, boost live performance values, and strengthen the festival’s link to the Eurovision Song Contest.