It don’t come easy, and it don’t come cheap. But the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 is most definitely coming to the Netherlands. Now a big question: Who will produce the 65th edition of the contest and most importantly who will pay for it?

We should start this discussion by clarifying that the Netherlands’ Eurovision broadcaster AVROTROS will not be solely responsible for hosting and producing the event. It will be a collaboration with news broadcaster NOS, and it will be monitored closely by the public broadcaster’s umbrella organisation NPO.

As you’re fully aware, it takes a lot of cash to produce one of the world’s biggest live television events. But Prime minister Mark Rutte has already stated publicly that the Dutch government will not neccesarily equip umbrella public broadcasting organisation NPO with any additional funds. They should instead first try to finance it within the existing budget.

As we reported a few weeks before Eurovision, The Netherlands already had a basic plan of how to host Eurovision should Duncan Laurence win.

A spokesperson for the NPO, the parent organisation of all public broadcasters in the Netherlands, told RTL Nieuws that a generic scenario to host Eurovision has been in the drawers of the public broadcaster for several years now.

“There is a scenario concerning the outline, but we will only start working with it after the Netherlands has won the final.”

Surely that would include matters of finance. We haven’t seen the document, but given how far ahead they have been thinking of things, it seems likely they would have some behind-the-scenes plans in place.

Dutch broadcasters

The Netherlands has perhaps one of the most confusing and complex public broadcaster structures in Europe, which needs some explanation.

As a result of extreme divides in society at the time of the surge of television in Europe, called pillarisation, the Dutch public broadcaster became a union of several broadcasters with those broadcasters each having their own political or spiritual identity. This was to give every part of society broadcasting time.

The two broadcasters which came together to form AVROTROS originally had more of a liberal stance, but as with many broadcasters, this stance has become less and less visible as time has gone on. Nowadays, the amount of broadcasting time is allocated by the amount of members each broadcaster has.

As the NPO is the parent organisation of AVROTROS, it will mainly be the NPO that would deal with the finances and the subsidies for Eurovision.

NPO told RTL Nieuws that financing is something that they would obviously discuss with the EBU at a later stage. AVROTROS would, however, still take care of all the creative work in the event of hosting.

Read all our Netherlands news here

46 Comments
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Anna
Anna
5 years ago

No funding? So maybe the hosting city will be Madurodam then…

Jubi
5 years ago

countries from west europe always do well hosting eurovision

Oslo2021
Oslo2021
5 years ago

I really hope that Martin Garrix will do a guest performance on final

Esc Brazil
Esc Brazil
5 years ago

ARUBA 2020 – Opening act: Flamingos ft Eleni Foureira and her pink feather coat!!!

Loin dici
5 years ago

Extra tips: be Austria when they’re hosting. I mean, break from all that blue themes! We already had them for like four years in a row!

Telemovies < Say Na Na Na
Telemovies < Say Na Na Na
5 years ago
Reply to  Loin dici

IMO Austria and Portugal had the worst organization this decade tbh

joko
joko
5 years ago

Just get the jury votes right, then i am happy!

EzZ
EzZ
5 years ago

Honestly they know how to put on a great show, as they’ve hosted Junior Eurovision, and they can attract an audience quite well. I just hope That the Dutch broadcaster and people solely host the show on their own, without any Swedish influences at all. Go back to having 2 hosts, and really go out and put on the best show since Sweden 3 years ago.
You guys can do it and I for one can’t see what you will come up with.

Jubi
5 years ago
Reply to  EzZ

the most important are the songs, the songs!!
thats why ESC2018 was not expensive and it was pretty good

Esc1234
Esc1234
5 years ago

Please Dutch people, you have such an amazing tv industry, don’t let the Swedish mafia into YOUR party.

Ocato
Ocato
5 years ago
Reply to  Esc1234

I am new here, but what is up with the Sweden hate? Is it just because they have a very slick music industry or is there something else going on?

CyxCy
CyxCy
5 years ago

If they think about it for years, they will manage the situation very well. For the rest we will give them just some basic tips:
– do not choose a room that is too dark.
– Never again red lights.
– No need to multiply hosts, just find some good ones.
– No need to break the piggy bank to bring an American superstar: just find someone nice, who honors his contracts and who sings well live.
– find a director who knows how to handle multiple camera angles.

James
James
5 years ago
Reply to  CyxCy

John Paul Gosselaar as host? 🙂

Loin dici
5 years ago
Reply to  James

Or probably Cornald Maas?

Loin dici
5 years ago
Reply to  CyxCy

By the way, what are the red lights about? Is it the Swiss performance or is there something I don’t notice?

Rimig
Rimig
5 years ago

Sure it will be an amazing show

Justice
Justice
5 years ago

It can only get better. And a country like The Netherlands should have no excuse to outsource anything to Björkman, which has become to most important thing at Eurovision.

Charles
Charles
5 years ago
Reply to  Justice

Björkmann regarded as a thing … lol I feel a bit better now …

Salio
Salio
5 years ago

One of the most biggest and important events of all tile is coming to your country, and you’re not supporting that? Madness.

Nata
Nata
5 years ago
Reply to  Salio

Eurovision isn’t really a thing here, except when the Dutch act stands a chance. People here couldn’t care less for other music than pop music, usually in English (although Dutch hiphop has been on the rise the last couple of years), so they aren’t interested in something like ESC. It’s a shame, really.

Lenchen
Lenchen
5 years ago
Reply to  Nata

When the Eurovision Song Contest is taking place in your country you should care though…it’s extremely good for promoting your country on a big international stage…shame 🙁

Nata
Nata
5 years ago
Reply to  Lenchen

They should care, but they don’t. And they don’t want to promote the country, they even want to keep tourists away, especially in Amsterdam.

Ocato
Ocato
5 years ago
Reply to  Lenchen

I don’t think we don’t care. Lots of people do care. But the current prime minister has taken a rather tough stance on public TV spending, so to say in advance that he will support more tax euros going there would be a reversal in his position. Don’t worry, the money will be found 🙂

Jubi
5 years ago
Reply to  Salio

thats the right way to do!
Only a poor and 3rd world country would spend many millions to host eurovision
They don´t need to spend more than the necessary
ESC2018 got 15millions from sponsers and it was done!

Rodrigo
Rodrigo
5 years ago
Reply to  Jubi

That’s wrong. The Lisbon municipality paid for over 5 million euros and the Portuguese Tourism Board paid for around 12 million euros. The remaining 3 million where paid by smaller sponsors and by the national broadcaster.

Frisian esc
Frisian esc
5 years ago

Yeah… As a dutch guy i can say to you guys: Take everything that our prime minister Mark Rutte says with a great pinch of salt xD

Eli
Eli
5 years ago

The Dutch and being stingy, name a more iconic duo.

Hector
Hector
5 years ago
Reply to  Eli

Sweden and the national juries LOL

Eli
Eli
5 years ago
Reply to  Hector

The UK and the bottom 5

Loin dici
5 years ago
Reply to  Eli

The Swedes and, you know, being Swedes.

Frisian esc
Frisian esc
5 years ago
Reply to  Eli

Azerbaijan and foreign songwriters

Jack
Jack
5 years ago
Reply to  Eli

Germany…and (I’m sorry), 0 points.

KESC
KESC
5 years ago
Reply to  Eli

Valentina and San Marino

Replay replay replay yeah
Replay replay replay yeah
5 years ago
Reply to  Eli

Greece and Cyprus giving douze points each

David F
David F
5 years ago
Reply to  Eli

Belarus and voting irregularities.

Frisian esc
Frisian esc
5 years ago
Reply to  Eli

Or what about madonna and autotune?

Loin dici
5 years ago
Reply to  Eli

Montenegro and Serbia

Loin dici
5 years ago

They have hosted JESC 2007 and 2012 with a safe budget, so I can trust them to do the same with this one.

SVW
SVW
5 years ago
Reply to  Loin dici

The Junior’s hosted by the Netherlands were SO good and far ahead of its time if you look at production and organization. Compare the opening act of JESC 2012 (Amsterdam) to ESC 2012 (Baku)….

Mattias Sollerman
Mattias Sollerman
5 years ago

Eurovision costs the broadcaster around 10-20 million euros. NPO budget is a bit over 800 mililion, of which 75% is taspayer money.

srulik
srulik
5 years ago

10-20 million euro? Try 40-50 million. Israeli broadcaster kan had spent 45 million euro…

Vincent
Vincent
5 years ago
Reply to  srulik

Baku was 60 M (newly built hall), Copenhagen 45M but Malmö around 15M.
The Dutch organisation stated that it expects somewhere between 25-35M.

Mattias Sollerman
Mattias Sollerman
5 years ago
Reply to  srulik

If your country is outside of Europe or you want to build a new arena, costs are gonna increase. But I agree, “10-20 million” was misleading.

Jubi
5 years ago
Reply to  srulik

10-20millions are enough to host a good eurovision
Of course if you have good professionals in your country and a good venue….if not, everything will be more expensive

Kirby
Kirby
5 years ago

Every year it seems to happen the same thing. But as the Eurovision month comes closer, the organizers always find a way and end up with an amazing show. Support will always show up from somewhere …because you know that (unless you have Sweden’s probabilities) you don’t bring Eurovision home any year.

Jubi
5 years ago
Reply to  Kirby

Not really…in 2018 the budget was officialy announced quite earlier