\t\tRead: 3 min<\/p>\n
The Eurovision Song Contest takes place this week in Vienna. To many Canadians, the five-day international contest may seem distant or even unfamiliar.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But the 2025 federal budget said Ottawa would \u201cexplore participation\u201d in Eurovision, alongside a $150-million boost to the CBC.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The move comes as Canada looks to strengthen ties with the European Union \u2014 but also at a time when the contest itself is under strain.<\/p>\n
Five countries \u2014 the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland, Spain and Slovenia \u2014 have pulled out this year to protest Israel\u2019s participation amidst its ongoing military action in Gaza.<\/p>\n
Karen Fricker, a Brock University professor who has studied Eurovision for 25 years, says the show has always balanced entertainment and politics, but that balance is now breaking down.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe is-it-political-or-is-it-not-political line is now a massive fault line around participation in the contest,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The Australia option<\/p>\n
Since its founding in 1956 by the European Broadcasting Union, Eurovision has become a major phenomenon that attracts over 160-million viewers each year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Eurovision can be thought of as a cross between the Olympic Games and American Idol: national public broadcasters each send one artist or band to perform one original song before a live audience.<\/p>\n
The winner is chosen through a combination of national jury votes and public voting. Some notable past winners include Sweden\u2019s ABBA, Ireland\u2019s Johnny Logan, and Canada\u2019s C\u00e9line Dion, who won in 1988 representing Switzerland.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The CBC has been an associate member of the European Broadcasting Union since 1950, but has never broadcast or participated in the contest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A CBC spokesperson told Canadian Affairs in an email that the CBC is not eligible to participate in Eurovision as an associate member. An EBU spokesperson confirmed that position in an email to Canadian Affairs. <\/p>\n
But Fricker notes that Australia\u2019s Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), the country\u2019s multicultural public broadcaster, is also an associate member of the EBU and has participated in Eurovision since 2015.<\/p>\n
In a follow-up email, the CBC spokesperson said the CBC is \u201cnot pursuing an arrangement similar to Australia\u2019s, with regard to [Eurovision] participation.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The spokesperson added that the CBC is exploring closer collaboration with the EBU on initiatives like the Eurovision News Exchange and Euroradio Music Exchange, which would allow it to share news footage, audio and music content internationally.<\/p>\n
Canadianizing the contest<\/p>\n
Sources said Canadian participation in Eurovision would take time to achieve.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Unlike Canadian viewers, Australians were able to watch Eurovision on SBS for decades before Australia entered the competition in 2015.<\/p>\n
Fricker says it would make sense for the CBC to start by simply broadcasting the event.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn order for Eurovision to really work in Canada, there needs to be higher awareness of it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
She says the CBC could broadcast Eurovision the same way it covers the Olympics, with Canadian commentators explaining the event to a Canadian audience.<\/p>\n
Jess Carniel, a researcher at the University of Southern Queensland who studies the contest, notes Australia\u2019s integration into Eurovision was gradual.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe EBU had been looking to expand into the Asia Pacific region for some time when Australia joined the contest,\u201d Carniel told Canadian Affairs in an email.<\/p>\n
She pointed to years of groundwork between Australia\u2019s SBS broadcaster and Eurovision organizers before Australia officially joined, including dedicated Australian commentary booths and special segments highlighting Australian fans.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll of these things are evidence of relationship building between the Australian partners and the EBU and about acculturating the global Eurovision audience with an Australian presence in the contest,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Fricker says full participation in the contest would be a significant undertaking.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a very complex, major live-entertainment event that requires research, fiscal investment, on-site viewing, and thinking about what Canadian national representation in Eurovision would look like,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The CBC told Canadian Affairs it is sending three staff to this year\u2019s contest in Vienna as \u201cobservers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018What makes it interesting\u2019<\/p>\n
Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Iceland all competed in Eurovision in 2025. But their public broadcasters withdrew from the 2026 contest over the European Broadcasting Union\u2019s decision to allow Israel to continue participating. Israel\u2019s public broadcaster, KAN, is a full member of the EBU. Israel first participated in Eurovision in 1973.<\/p>\n
Fricker says some degree of political friction is inevitable, and even part of the event\u2019s appeal.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wouldn\u2019t be here 70 years later if it were a talent contest that didn\u2019t have national identification connected to it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what makes it interesting \u2014 \u200athat these artists are representing their country, and it is their country that people are voting for, not the name of the artist.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Eurovision formally bans overtly political songs, but Fricker says the line between culture and politics has always been contested.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is meant by \u2018political\u2019 is a deeply complex question,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Carniel says Canadian participation would likely ignite a broader debate about the contest\u2019s identity.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor another non-European country to join, such as Canada, the big lesson would be to be prepared for a lot of discussions about what the \u2018Euro\u2019 in Eurovision means,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Fricker says Canada would need to weigh the benefits of joining against the risks of entering the contest at a polarized time.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn the one hand, I see the strategic reasons for Canada wanting to get involved in the contest,\u201d she said. \u201cOn the other hand, this is a very touchy time to be entering this field.\u201d<\/p>\n
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