City of Lucerne End of the Blue Balls Festival after the pandemic

The 2019 Lucerne Blue Balls Festival will be the last of its kind. The festival was canceled in 2022 because Festival Director Urs Leierer fell ill. The city regrets the end of the collaboration.

The music event, which had attracted around 100,000 people, was subsequently canceled twice due to the pandemic.

Director Urs Leierer is now in better health, his agency Blue Balls Music announced on Tuesday. However, he will not be continuing the Blue Balls Festival as usual. The Lucerne Blues Session Association will also no longer be able to organize the event.

However, the association is not ruling out the possibility of organizing smaller festivals or events, including in other cities. However, no concrete details were given.

The Lucerne City Council regrets the loss of the popular festival, which has shaped the Lucerne Summer of Culture, according to an initial reaction. Despite various discussions in recent weeks and months, it has not been possible to find a sustainable solution based on the existing structures.

The long-standing collaboration with the Lucerne Blues Session Association has thus come to an end. It is no longer entitled to subsidies or rights to use the KKL or the public space. The City of Lucerne is now examining any alternatives and replacement concepts received from 2023 onwards.

The city last supported the event with 130,000 francs per year as well as usage rights. It estimated the value of this commitment at between 750,000 and 1 million francs. The city council rejected a greater financial contribution in 2020.

Leierer, who wanted to broaden the support for the festival, reacted to this decision with incomprehension. He said at the time that he did not know what the future held for the festival.