The Jackal to host Rai 1's PrimaFestival ahead of Sanremo 2027, announced on Tg1

The announcement

Rai 1 has confirmed that The Jackal, the Neapolitan comedy collective, will host the PrimaFestival, the daily strip that airs straight after the Tg1 evening news and before the Sanremo 2027 evenings. The news came during the 20:00 Tg1 on Friday, 30 October, when the headlines previewed a video featuring Stefano De Martino, the festival's artistic director and host, and the group. The festival itself runs from 16 to 20 February 2027.

In the clip De Martino phoned the group to ask whether they were happy to take on the strip, then joked about why he had picked them. He said:

“I chose you for this, not for talent.”

The Jackal replied that they would do it 'next year or we'll do it at Piedigrotta'. De Martino closed the call with 'Forza Napoli!', and the group answered 'sempre!'.

Who will host

Ciro Priello, Fabio Balsamo, Gianluca Fru and Aurora Leone will lead the PrimaFestival, which is a return to Sanremo for the group, this time as a full line-up. Priello hosted the same strip in 2022 alongside Roberta Capua and Paola Di Benedetto. Fru joined The Kolors on stage in 2025 during their performance, and Aurora Leone co-hosted the DopoFestival with Nicola Savino in the 2026 edition. Fanpage reports that this is Fabio Balsamo's first time at the festival. The group also runs the 'Divano The Jackal' format, in which it comments on the festival with new guests each evening.

Chi had reported in October that talks between the group and Rai were advanced. De Martino had already booked the collective several times for his programme Stasera tutto è possibile, which helped the deal.

What the strip will cover

The PrimaFestival offers a preview of the evening shows, with interviews with artists in competition, behind-the-scenes stories, red carpet curiosities and the atmosphere a few steps from the Teatro Ariston. The Tg1 announcement stressed the group's comedy, creativity and attention to pop and digital culture, as the group's own style suits that format.

Festival timing and the cast reveal

De Martino took the baton from Carlo Conti last year, in a live broadcast in front of millions of viewers, and this is the first edition he leads as artistic director. The 24 Big in competition have not been announced yet. According to unofficial reports cited by Fanpage, De Martino may drop the traditional Tg1 at 13:00 reveal in favour of the prime-time Sarà Sanremo on Friday, 11 December on Rai 1, when the winner of Sanremo Giovani would also be named. Speculation in the press names Emma, Irama and Ghali among possible contestants, but none of this has been confirmed.