What’s in a date? Analysing previous Eurovision finals hosted on 18 May…

Tel Aviv 2019

So what do the Oslo and Malmö contests say we should expect for our third ever Eurovision Song Contest taking place on 18 May? Of course, we don’t imagine the date has some sort of special Eurovision spell, but in the event that it does…

Another top five for Norway?

The only nation that managed to record a top-five finish in both of the previous Eurovision Song Contests to take place on 18 May is Norway. With only one top-five placing this decade, the Norwegians will surely see this as a good omen to make that two before the decade is out. But can they get their first win since 2009?

A repeat winner?

Ireland and Denmark achieved their seventh and third victories on 18 May 1996 and 18 May 2013 respectively. Therefore, is 2019 the perfect opportunity for Sweden to score that all-important seventh victory to tie with Ireland as the most successful Eurovision nation in the contest’s history?

A Scandinavian host for 2019!

Oh… perhaps not! Yes, while the two previous 18 May Eurovisions were hosted in Norway and Sweden, the third 18 May Eurovision is taking place at the complete opposite end of Europe… Israel! So there we go… Eurovision certainly can never be called predictable!

The beauty of Eurovision

Yes, the beauty of Eurovision is the fact that every year, every country gets to wipe the slate clean. All they need is that one song and they could go from semi-final no-hopers one year, to title contenders the next. 2018 was the perfect example of this. Israel suffered four consecutive non-qualifications between 2011 and 2014, yet stormed to victory just a few years later and are on a run of four consecutive qualifications.

Runners-up Cyprus earned their best ever finish courtesy of Eleni Foureira’s Fuego, certainly a far cry from Cyprus’ record of six non-qualifications in eight between 2006 and 2013. Like Israel, the small island now find themselves with a run of four consecutive grand final appearances!

And Czech Republic, the nation who had one of the worst Eurovision records. Well not anymore! Mikolas Josef gave the nation a record-breaking sixth-place finish with  Lie to Me scoring the country’s first ever grand final televoting points in the process.

On the other hand, 100% qualification records tumbled in Lisbon with Azerbaijan, Romania and Russia all failing to qualify for the first time. Then, the two countries who maintain that record, Australia and Ukraine, finished last in the grand final televote and the jury vote respectively.

Absolutely anyone could win the Eurovision Song Contest in Tel Aviv and we can not wait to see what songs are in store for us next May!

Engage with us!

What are your favourite memories from the 2001 and 2007 contests? Do you have any expectations for the 2018 contest in Lisbon? Tell us in the comments below and via our social media pages @ESCXTRA!