Devendra Kumar
The European Broadcasting Union has announced significant changes to the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest after the disqualification of Dutch act Joost Klein, who was set to perform in the fifth spot. Klein’s removal from the competition comes after a Swedish police investigation into an alleged incident. As a result, the Netherlands will no longer participate in the grand final.
The running order will remain unchanged, with all contestants keeping their original positions, including the songs that were scheduled to perform before and after Klein’s slot. However, the empty space left by Klein’s absence will not be filled with a new performance. The EBU has asked viewers to refrain from voting for song number five, warning that if anyone tries to vote for the non-existent song, their vote will not be counted and may result in charges.
The voting process will also be affected by Klein’s disqualification. The jury results have been recalculated to exclude any points awarded to the Netherlands. Each national jury ranks all songs from one to 26, and with 25 performers now remaining, the rankings have been adjusted accordingly. For example, if the Netherlands was ranked ninth by a national jury, the 10th-ranked song will now move down to number nine.
During the grand final, the viewing public will not be able to award points to the Netherlands, and the country will not appear on the scoreboard. Additionally, Dutch viewers will still be able to vote in the grand final, and the Dutch jury result will remain valid. The EBU has also informed telecommunications partners and will endeavour to block lines for song number five to prevent any potential voting irregularities.
The developments have raised questions about the integrity of the competition, with some wondering how the alleged incident was not discovered earlier. Despite the controversy, the Eurovision Song Contest will continue as planned, with the remaining 25 performers vying for the top spot. The grand final will proceed on Saturday, with the outcome ultimately determined by a combination of jury and viewer votes.