Guy Sebastian is keen to relive ‘Tonight Again‘, and now Eurovision Executive Supervisor Jon Ola Sand has revealed to Swedish Eurovision broadcaster SVT that Australia may do Eurovision again too.
News broke earlier this year that the EBU had invited Australia to participate as a guest in the contest to help celebrate the 60th anniversary of the show. We actually broke the news shortly before the EBU, ORF or SBS officially revealed the info, and our readers immediately told us we were insane (see the early comments on that post here). But of course it was true. The EBU then confirmed that Australia would vote in both semi finals and also gain a ticket directly to the final along with the host country, Austria, and the Big 5 – France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
At the time of the announcement, the EBU claimed that Australia’s participation would simply be a one-off, unless Australia won the contest and then they would be able to defend their title in 2016. Now it seems that Eurovision head honcho Jon Ola Sand may take the relationship with Australia even further.
In an interview with Swedish Eurovision broadcaster SVT, Sand says that the idea of Australia participating permanently would be “interesting”.
At this stage it is not known if and how Australia can be involved in the contest in the future. “Australia has demonstrated that it can deliver good things, and the interest is huge in the country. It is unclear so we will discuss whether or not to extend the contest,” Sand says.
“The idea is interesting. The contest will always be held in Europe, but if other countries want to join we can bring in some interesting countries and artists. These are just thoughts though and nothing is decided.”
We want to put the idea out to you guys! Would you be happy for Australia to stay permanently, or would you rather see them sashay away? Do you like the idea of offering the opportunity to other countries outside the EBU area? Or would you prefer the contest to stay unique to Europe? Vote in our poll below!
Poll: Do you want Australia to return to Eurovision?
[polldaddy poll=”8883714″]Photo: Andres Putting (EBU)
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no i think Austalia should participate every year and what’s with you guys that want Kazakhstan in i get it for other european countries but no for kazakhstan
As long as other songwriters are given a chance & it’s not just like the SBS/Sony Music deal that was so obviously done this time.
Oops typo I meant…. the precedent has been set.
I’m Australian of German and Irish ancestors but I think it would be weird being a yearly participant even though we love Eurovision here, It’s the quirky European nature of the contest that makes it wonderful. But a yearly foreign wildcard will re energise the competition and let the world know that Europe is not as insular as it appears. If Australia became a yearly contestant then you would be expected to open it up to all countries and that would be an unwieldy and unbearable competition that would go forever. But the wildcard entry should go straight to the… Read more »
i’m not against of the idea but they have to compete in the semi-finals of course.
@Eugene ESC UK: Of course they can’t be – for now – active members. Rules can change anytime.
The thing is, if they change the rules, that decision should be taken fairly.
I no people would be angry about it & wouldn’t get it at all because by the time May this year arrived lots of people still didn’t no why Australia had been allowed to compete for a one off even with it being announced in February. I’m australian so it has absolutely broken my heart to see the amount of shade that got thrown our way yes I get why but still not very nice. However I do think the music speaks for itself & should do I would love for us to return but I don’t know if Australia… Read more »
I may be bias towards by my country but I really want us to perform every year!
1: I will able to achieve a dream (since I was 8) of being on eurovision
2: SBS will loose veiws if we dont particapate next year. Eurovision has gained heaps of Eurovision fans from Australia because of Australia’s participation this year
3:We have heaps of talent here and it would also be good to get more Australian artists famous
I think what EBU can do is to let one non-European country to participate each year as a guest performer. So if it was Australia this year, it can be Brazil next year and so on. One extra contestant will not influence the contest much but will promote Eurovision worldwide and will grow its audience.
I’m of mixed emotions about Australia becoming a permanent member of the ESC club… I agree that they should first become a member of the EBA/EBU before that happens (just like all the other countries!) Next, they should have no direct ticket to the final…just in a semi-final like most, if you please, and only be able to vote in their own semi (not both). Finally, the EBU should REALLY be working on getting members who’ve not been participating back in the contest–especially Ukraine, B-H, Croatia, Bulgaria, Turkey, etc. If these conditions are met, then it could work out well,… Read more »
Disturbing to read all the xenophobia expressed on this page. Many people support building bridges & bringing people together BUT only if they are European. So maybe the next ESC should be Building Walls. Isolate Europe from the rest of the world! So sad to hear a continent displaying such attitudes.
If you are worried about culture clash, Australia is more European than many countries currently participating. The sky hasn’t fallen yet.
(Seriously @Eugene, rules are made up, rules can be changed. This is hardly a basis for a sound argument.)
Making Australia a permanent country in the contest would imply changing the rules and opening the door to all countries who wish to take part, yes, including the USA, who you all seem to fear so much. That is, unless the EBU decide to just break their own rules every year from now on. Wouldn’t it be much better to just create a WorldVision, or however you want to call it? I’m pretty sure if they were invited, many countries form the Americas and Africa would be more than happy to join. Why not them too? There’s nothing wrong with… Read more »
@FatMarmot true Eurasia and In Eurasia aka just Asia we got Europe – area with a distinctive civilization.. The term Europe spread over from the original territory to places that never supposed to be Europe. So, Europe widened gradually with the time. I wonder when will be next stretching)) When Europe ‘was born’ nobody knew about the tectonic plates. Besides, within Asia and any other continent we have multiple tectonic plates and geographical landmarks. It’s all irrelevant, really. Most important is our civilization – this is true Europe. She ends with the last country out there that somehow related to… Read more »
Australia should join if SBS applies and is accepted as an active member of the EBU.
Now if the EBU decides to open the partipation for the associate members of the organization (SBS is one of them), they will open a Pandora Box. Chile, Cuba, Brazil, New Zealand, United States and even China would be allowed to take part of the contest.
@Felix that is actually not entirely correct. For a start, it’s called Eurasia for a reason, because it shares the tectonic plate, but there are visible geographical landmarks marking the difference between Europe and Asia, most notably the Ural mountain range. Changing the subject, why should we bother keeping the contest forcibly in Europe? Personally, I’m in favor of a worldvision contest, because honestly, more eurovision is better eurovision for me. That and I want some more countries with different cultural roots and who aren’t afraid to send in more bands. Band-music is woefully underepresented in Eurovision, and I wish… Read more »
(again that bs about European not European /eyes rolled) Why not, Australia is more European than Turkey, Azerbaijan and possible be ESC country Kazakhstan.., besides Morocco, Tunisia, Lebanon – they all can participate any time and all of them have (at least in modern history) nothing to do with the European civilization. In this aspect Cyprus, Israel, Armenia and Georgia are special case. They all (more or less) have (and had) historical and cultural affinity with Europe throughout the history, they were there at the beginning of Europe itself. By the way.. Europe is actually West Asia)) It is not… Read more »
I think the EBU should focus on getting other countries back in first like Slovakia, B&H, Croatia, Turkey Bulgaria, then focus on new countries who want to be in the contest. I think if Australia wants to be in it for good, they should have to go through the SF.
P.S. If the USA ever did Eurovision we would get last place no matter who we send haha
Hm No !
Tho I would rather choose Australia over terror supporting Islamic countries like Azerbaijan, Turkey, Morocco, Kazakhstan ,Albania and Qatar…I mean come on let it be EUROvision.
Many Latin-American countries want to join us.
But uhhhh that’s good for Spain so it’s not going to happen. Uhm
Let Latin America join so Spain can be a threat and have their own bloc voting , hehehe.
Why not? The more the merrier!
1 year is enough. No!
That’d be awesome!
Mundovision Song Contest
I dont care how much Australia is ready to pay to be able to participate all I can say is that Eurovision shouldn’t be with Australia … This isn’t X Factor where anyone can practically take part but a European contest and should be left that way ! -.-
Fine but first:
Concentrate on getting EUROPEAN countries in.
They have to participate in the semi.
They vote in ONE semi
They are the only non-European( not counting Morocco, Israel etc.) country who enters. Other wise the U.S. will win every year
I will cry if this happens! Way to ruin ESC, EBU!
And the reasons Armenia, Turkey, Israel, Azerbaijan, Georgia are in ESC is because they are EBU members and on the geographical peripheries of Europe. Duh. Australia is neither of those things. I was happy about their one-off participation but as a permanent fixture? NO, NOT EVER EVER EVER NEVER
NO NO NO NO NO NO NO
Yea, why not.
I just don’t think it’s fair for Australia to vote in both semi-finals.
Hi everyone! Rules for the participation in the Eurovision contest state that all countries in Europe PLUS the non European ones around the Mediterranean sea are aloud to complete. That is why Morocco, Israel, Turkey, Lebanon etc can participate. The fact that countries like Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Georgia etc are also welcome to participate is the fact that they used to be part of the former USSR (considered European land). It’s as simple as that. It has nothing to do with how someone perceives Europe in their minds. An occasional invitation to a different special guest such as Australia would be… Read more »
@danielvarga You need an atlas if you think Qatar is close to Europe lol.
@ Mars, Cyprus is usually placed on Asia on maps. I know it is in the EU however it is surrounded by turkey to the north and lebanon and israel and syria to the east. I used to think Cyprus is in Europe when I was young, however, now apparently it is regarded to be an Asian country. I guess since it is an island, it only stands to opinion.
@Racal Qatar wanted to participate in the past. Moreover, they are geographically close to Europe. So that’s why I want them.
Kazakhstan has a little European part and they want to participate too.
No, it is not good idea. What if we invite in future Chine, and after that every year they won, because they have huge diaspora in every countries in Europe and Australia.
YES! YES! YEEEEEEEEEEEEEES
@Tobias
So, following your mentality, Greenland belongs to North America, the Canary Islands belong to Africa, Alaska belongs to Canada and Russia as a whole belongs to Asia.
I’d rather have every few years a different country compete. The more songs the better
Change the name in Eurovision World Song Contest
I think the EBU should offer one guest spot a year to interested countries, but change it up a little.
And @Mars: No, Cyprus is in fact in Asia, geographically speaking.
@Karuso
Cyprus is in Europe and in the EU. Get your facts straight
only if they have to go through the semis
Speaking as an Australian, I really don’t care if we compete or not – I’m more excited about having the chance to vote. Just please let us keep voting from now on.
I’m not so sure SBS could justify the expense of sending an act every year, they’re always strapped for cash and having their funding cut. But I think we should go through the semi-finals.
@danielvarga: “Dear Jon Ola! If you want more countries in ESC, then let Liechtenstein, Kazakhstan, Qatar and Morocco (with 2M TV) participate. Not Australia.” How in the world is Kazakhstan a better fit than Australia? And Qatar… Please refresh my memory: isn’t that the Middle-Eastern country that is currently exploiting thousands of Indian workers in horrible work conditions (around 1200 died already) to build stadiums in the middle of the desert for the World Cup 2022? That’s the country you want in the ESC? See what I was saying in my first comment? Australia in the ESC is an open… Read more »
This year yes, welcome. But not again. It’s just gonna be a mess, I tell you…
Only if they go through a SF and if other countries can also join. Otherwise, it won’t makes sense.
I’ll support it if they have to go through Semi-Finals and so long as not every country joins. Afterwards. Australia should just be an exception because it’s very European, and I don’t really want countries like the U.S. to start participating.
Still the EBU should focus first on bringing back Andorra, Monaco, Luxembourg, Slovakia, Croatia, Bosnia Herzegovina, Turkey ect. Before looking to Australia.
Why not. Saying Australia shouldn’t be in Eurovision because traditionally European countries compete in ESC is like saying gay people shouldn’t marry because traditionally marriage is there only for straight couples.
If Israel, Azerbaijan, Morocco, Armenia, Cyprus, Georgia (and almost Lebanon) [all non-Europeans] do compete, I see no reason why Australia can’t.
It’s probably a money question as well. It’s an incredibly expensive event and I’m sure that SBS is putting a lot of Australian dollars towards it $$$$$
Dear Jon Ola! If you want more countries in ESC, then let Liechtenstein, Kazakhstan, Qatar and Morocco (with 2M TV) participate. Not Australia.
Instead of letting Australia join permanently, why not introduce a “WorldVision” where the winner of the Eurovision, represents Europe in a competition against representatives from Australia, Asia, The Americas and Africa? That way, we can still enjoy our eurovision, but still see the talent that the rest of the world can bring.