Italy’s public broadcaster RAI has secured a new deal with the city of Sanremo to keep hosting the iconic Italian Song Festival, despite a long legal battle over how the event should be awarded. The agreement, whose financial terms remain undisclosed, grants RAI the rights to stage the festival for three years starting in 2026, with an option to extend for two more. The move comes after Italy’s highest administrative court, the Council of State, ruled that the festival could no longer be handed directly to RAI without competition. Instead, the city was required to launch an open bidding process. Although the tender was accessible to any media or entertainment company, RAI ended up being the only participant. This legal wrangle traces back to 2024, when the private company Just Entertainment challenged Sanremo’s decision to bypass a public tender. Initially, a regional administrative court sided with the challenger, and the Council of State later confirmed the ruling, mandating a transparent process for assigning the festival from 2026 onward. The next edition, the 76th in the festival’s history, is scheduled for February 24–28, 2026, carefully placed to avoid overlapping with the Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina. Still, the story isn’t over: Just Entertainment has also filed an appeal against the newly issued tender, with a ruling expected in October. Until then, RAI’s control of Italy’s most-watched music event may remain under scrutiny.