The chance of the Netherlands reaching the Eurovision Song Contest final has again increased slightly now that Russia is no longer welcome. The country was in fact, just like the Netherlands, seeded in the first semi-final.
Instead of eighteen participants, 17 countries are now part of the first semi-final. Ten of them will qualify for the final on May 14. Besides the Netherlands, there are Albania, Latvia, Switzerland, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Moldova, Ukraine, Lithuania, Norway, Portugal, Denmark, Armenia, Austria, Croatia, Iceland, and Greece.
Russia in general is one of the best countries in the Eurovision Song Contest and is always a surefire for the final. Since the semi-finals were introduced in 2004, the country has failed to qualify only once, in 2018. In total, Russia has competed 24 times and finished on the podium nine times. In 2008, when singer Dima Bilan sang the song Believe, the only profit was made.
Forty countries
The field of participants for the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest in Turin currently consists of forty countries. The Netherlands is participating for the 62nd time. Previous winning Italy has already reached the final, and France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom have already secured the final ticket as members of the so-called “Big Five”. Italy is usually part of this as well.
Singer S10 is the Dutch entry. She will present her song next week.
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