The Eurovision Song Contest 2025 semifinals are still months away — but one country has already withdrawn from the competition.
Moldova, an Eastern European country that borders Romania and Ukraine, is pulling out of Eurovision due to multiple factors.
Corneliu Durnescu, the director of the Moldova 1 television station, announced the decision during a Wednesday, Jan. 22, press conference.
Durnescu said that the selection process for Moldova’s 2025 Eurovision entry “highlighted certain challenges, including a decrease in public interest” in the event as well as concerns about “the overall quality” of the performances.
“This fact generated a negative perception among specialists and the public, underlining the need for a substantial reform in the selection process,” Durnescu said, per Eurovisionworld.com. He added that “economic, administrative, and artistic challenges” all contributed to the decision to cancel Etapa Națională, Moldova’s selection contest for Eurovision.
Moving forward, Moldova hopes to “review the selection criteria and methodology to encourage wider participation of talented artists and to provide a more consistent and competitive cultural representation on the international stage,” Durnescu said.
Head of the Eurovision Moldova Delegation, Daniela Crudu, added that it’s “important to support people who want to reach big stages” by giving them an “opportunity to prepare better.”
Moldova has participated in every Eurovision Song Contest since making its debut in 2005. The country achieved its highest placement to date, third, in 2017 with SunStroke Project’s EDM track “Hey, Mamma.”
Eurovision is a delightfully campy competition that draws performers from around the world. Countries belonging to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) — including non-European countries like Israel, Australia, and Armenia — select an original song to be performed live and transmitted to national broadcasters via the Eurovision and Euroradio networks.
2025 marks the first year that people from non-participating countries, such as the United States, can vote for the winner. The two semifinals and the grand finale, during which a winner will be crowned, will all be available to stream on Peacock.
The first and second semifinals are scheduled for May 13 and May 15, respectively, while the finale will take place on May 17. All three events will be held in Basel, Switzerland. Per tradition, Switzerland was offered the chance to host after winning Eurovision 2024 with Nemo’s EDM song “The Code.”
There’s a long road ahead before the Eurovision 2025 semifinals, but some countries have already chosen the song they will submit. Albania settled on “Zjerm” by Shkodra Elektronike, while Nina Žižić will represent Montenegro with her song “Dobrodošli.”
The first Eurovision Song Contest took place in 1956. Since its inception, Eurovision has helped launch the careers of Olivia Newton-John, Celine Dion, and ABBA.
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Publish date : 2025-01-23 19:56:00
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