The BRIT Awards has announced major changes for its upcoming 2026 ceremony, marking a historic moment in the event’s nearly five-decade history. For the first time ever, the prestigious music awards will be held outside London, relocating to Manchester’s state-of-the-art Co-op Live Arena. The ceremony is scheduled for February 28, 2026, at the 23,500-capacity venue, which officially opened in 2024. This move ends a long-standing tradition of hosting the show in the capital, most recently at The O2 Arena, which served as its home from 2011 to 2025.

Alongside this landmark relocation, the BRITs has introduced a series of sweeping updates to its eligibility criteria across several key award categories ahead of the nomination process. The eligibility period for the 2026 ceremony will run from December 6, 2024, to December 4, 2025.

One of the most notable updates is the revival of the ‘Critics’ Choice Award’, previously known as the ‘BRITs Rising Star Award’. Established in 2008, the award is decided by a panel of industry experts and has historically recognized emerging talents such as Adele, Sam Smith, and Ellie Goulding. Its current holder is Myles Smith. Renamed ‘Rising Star’ in 2020, the category continues to spotlight artists expected to make a major impact in the year ahead. To qualify, artists must not have released a top 20 album or more than one top 20 single on the U.K. charts.

The ‘Best New Artist’ category will also be rebranded as the ‘Breakthrough Artist’ award. This change reflects the category’s focus on British artists who are solidifying their presence in the music industry and celebrating their achievements during the eligibility period. Known previously as ‘British Newcomer’ (1982–2002) and ‘British Breakthrough Act’ (2003–2019), the award honors musicians with a slightly more established profile than those recognized in the Critics’ Choice category. Recent winners include The Last Dinner Party (2025), RAYE (2024), and Wet Leg (2023).

Further revisions have been made to the eligibility rules for the major categories, ‘Artist of the Year’, ‘International Artist of the Year’, ‘Group of the Year’, and ‘International Group of the Year.’ Nominees in these categories must now have achieved either a top 30 album or two top 20 singles on the Official U.K. Charts within the eligibility window. This is a tighter benchmark compared to the previous rule, which required a top 40 album or two top 20 singles.

For the highly coveted ‘Mastercard Album of the Year’ award, eligible albums must have reached the top 30 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart.

In contrast, the eligibility criteria for the five genre categories, Alternative/Rock, Dance, Hip-Hop/Grime/Rap, Pop, and R&B, will remain unchanged. Artists in these categories must still have achieved a top 40 album or single within the eligibility period to qualify.

Nominees for the 2026 BRIT Awards will be announced in January, following the voting process conducted by the BRITs’ official voting academy, which includes thousands of musicians, producers, industry professionals, and journalists. In recent years, public voting has been introduced for the genre-specific awards to enhance audience participation.

In a key organizational update, Stacey Tang, co-president of RCA U.K., has been appointed as chair of the 2026 BRIT Awards Committee. She will oversee the creative direction of the ceremony, working closely with representatives from major and independent record labels, BRITs TV, and the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).