Cordoba is the favorite to win the 2016 European Capital of Culture

6 Spanish cities are in the final phase of a battle to be named the Spanish candidate for the 2016 European Capital of Culture.

Representatives for each city are in Madrid today to present their candidacy before 13 cultural experts and convince them why they should be chosen to represent Spain.

The cities competing are:
Burgos, Córdoba, Donostia-San Sebastián, Las Palmas, Segovia and  Zaragoza.

 The panel of 7 judges from various European institutions and 6 Spanish judges from the Ministry of Culture will decide on a verdict which will be announced this evening. The winner will go on to compete with the Polish city of Wroclaw.  Poland and Spain were chosen to host next 2016 European Capital of Culture title when the European Parliament and the Union Council agreed on a 2006 list of cities that would receive the distinction until 2019.

The “favorite” Spanish city is said to Cordoba.

The final winner will be decided in May of next year by European Parliament and the Union Council. That city will become the 2016 European Capital of Culture, a distinction which brings many events and funding to the city.
Salamanca, a Spanish city in western Spain, held the title in 2002.