The EuroWhat? Podcast: Eurovision News & Reviews

Lithuania isn't exactly a Eurovision powerhouse, but their lengthy selection processes have been showcases for the country's music industry. We take a look at the Baltic nation and how their approach to the Contest may be serving a different purpose than competition.

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Croatia is very specific about how it chooses to represent itself on the Eurovision stage. We take a look at the country's history at the Contest via its long-running national selection format Dora.

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Hey “Everybody”! Estonia and Latvia were the first two new countries to win Eurovision after the EBU expanded its membership in 1993. As we get ready for the Eesti Laul and Supernova selection processes, “I Wanna” take a look at the Contest history of these two Baltic nations.

Baltic Buddies Summary

• Estonia at Eurovision (1:03)
• Join the EuroWhat? AV Club (17:34)
• Latvia at Eurovision (18:45)

Subsc...

Bulgaria returns to Eurovision following a three-year absence. We take a look at the country's history at the Contest: a rough start in its initial tenure, a renaissance after its first hiatus, and looking ahead to how Bulgaria's next tenure may go.

Rough Summary

• Selection Season So Far: Moldova, Malta, Luxembourg, Georgia, Israel, Switzerland (0:40)
• Join the EuroWhat? AV Club (4:29)
• Bulgaria's ...

Luxembourg returned to Eurovision in 2024 after a 30-year hiatus. When they left the Contest, they were tied with Ireland and France in having won the most times at 5 wins apiece. We’ll explore Luxembourg’s incredible run and see how they’ve adapted to the modern era as we preview the third edition of the Luxembourg Song Contest.

Bad Lucksembourg Summary

• Luxembourg Stats at Eurovision (1:20)
• Luxembourg Host...

Moldova has returned to Eurovision after a one-year break and has selected 16 songs to compete for a trip to Vienna in May. Malta has also streamlined their process a bit and will select their entrant from among 18 hopefuls. We’ll take a look at the history of these two countries and preview the selections that will be taking place on Saturday, January 17.

Folklore & Rock & Roll Summary

• End of 2025 ...

How do fans cope when the object of their fandom becomes problematic? Dr. Zoë Jay returns to the show to share insights from her research within the Eurovision community about this topic through the Eurovisionaries project. We also discuss ideas for fans who may be approaching 2026 with the mindset of new year, new me, new special interest.

Dr. Zoë Jay

Dr Zoë Jay is a researcher in international politics at the ...

With the passage of the EBU's new Eurovision rules, Israel will be in Vienna while the Netherlands, Spain, Slovenia, Ireland, and Iceland have withdrawn from the Contest. We’ll be discussing the fallout from the decision and figuring out how we’ll be navigating 2026...

Kerflooey Summary

• What happened at the EBU General Assembly Meeting (1:11)
• What is happening after the Eurovision vote? (19:16)
• What wil...

Over-the-top costumes, silly phrases twisted to make catchy hooks, and a backdrop that is not always taken seriously can cause a lot of Eurovision hopefuls to be lumped (or perhaps dismissed) into the category of “joke entries.” We’ll explore some examples and try to “get it” in terms of what might be happening under the hood of these songs. Chris Molanphy from Slate’s Hit Parade will join us to help with analyzing the nov...

Australia first competed at Eurovision when Austria hosted the 60th Edition of the Contest in 2015. As we approach the 70th Edition (also hosted by Austria), let’s explore Australia’s history with the ESC and do a pulse check on how the country is doing in the competition.

Down Under Summary

• Australian Artists at Eurovision: The New Seekers, Olivia Newton-John, Gina G (2:47)
• Why is Australia so into Eurovis...

It was a busy October in Eurovision Land: The EBU unscheduled an extraordinary member session, two countries announced their return to the Contest, and several national selections are getting their ducks in a row. We get caught up on the headlines as Eurovision 2026 starts to take shape.

Momentum Summary

• EBU cancels "extraordinary session" (1:32)
• Bulgaria and Romania return to Eurovision (3:21)
• Ge...

The European Broadcasting Union has postponed its plan to hold a membership vote to decide if Israel’s broadcaster KAN will be allowed to compete in next year’s Eurovision. While it remains unclear if the vote will still happen, it doesn’t fully resolve how the EBU got to this point in the first place. We’ll take a closer look at other times the EBU’s non-political stance has been tested and see what lessons can be applied...

Käärijä, Joost, Baby Lasagana, Tommy Cash... we've used the term "Weird Little Dudes" to describe these contestants from the last few editions of Eurovision. Something else they have in common: all were favorites to win and did extremely well in the televote. We attempt to define the term and try to identify what other Eurovision contestants may fall into this category.

Weird Little Dudes Summary

Eurovision has given their branding elements a makeover in preparation for next year's 70th edition. Graphic Designer Justin Ladia joins Ben to discuss why rebrands happen, what the EBU may want to accomplish with this rebrand, and first impressions on the new fonts and images introduced for Vienna 2026.

Perceived Aura Summary

• Why do a rebrand? (2:31)
• Examining the new Eurovision logo and fonts (7:08)
• T...

It's offficially the pre-season for Eurovision 2026 and we have a lot of news to get caught up on. We're heading to Vienna in May and planning for the national final season is underway. We also review Austria's CV at Eurovision.

Welcome to Austria Summary

• Willkommen in Wien (0:49)
• National Final Updates: Austria, Germany, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, Ukraine (4:40)
• Coming up: Eurovisio...

As we wrap up our 8th season and Eurovision's 69th (nice) edition, we take a rapid fire tour of the Contest up to this point while trying to find something nice or interesting to say about each year. Content warning: goofiness.

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The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always we...

The Grand Final of the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest featured 21 songs with non-English lyrics, the most to appear since the language rule was abolished in 1999. In this episode, we'll explore the history of the language rule and why language diversity has returned to the Contest.

Lingua Franca Summary

• The introduction of the Language Rule at Eurovision (4:17)
• The End of the Language Rule (17:17)
• What ma...

Quite a bit has happened since we last checked in on Eurovision news. Executive Supervisor Martin Österdahl will be stepping down, there's a new head of the Reference Group, and we know which cities have made bids to host next year's competition.

Good to Go Summary

• Eurovision Host City: Innsbruck vs Vienna (1:00)
• Martin Österdahl Steps Down (4:48)
• Have you joined the Eurowhat AV Club? (10:43)
• 17 Par...

1990 was the European Year of Tourism. The map of Europe was also changing, as the fall of the Berlin Wall and the movement toward what would become the European Union started to redefine the concept of borders. We’ll be taking a look at how the 1990 Contest in Yugoslavia reflected this new era in Europe, as well as how the 2025 Contest mirrors those reflections 35 years later.

Yugoslavia 1990 Summary

• #Euro...