The ESC – More then just a Song Contest

The great majority of the participants taking part in demandi’s ‘Eurovision Song Contest Survey 2007’ are enthusiastic followers of the event.
From the over 2000 participants 58% consider the ESC to be a year-round event and 28% stated that the contest really excites them for a few weeks each year. Only 1% of participants said that the contest didn’t interest them at all.

Participants were also asked which elements they would like to see reintroduced. Thereby it became obvious that many fans are still unhappy with the voting system changes carried out in 2006. 44% propose that all the results should be read out on TV again. And almost a third of the participants (31%) would like to see the orchestra back on stage. 30% want the musicians to perform in their country’s own language.

For the majority of participants the ESC is more then just a song contest. 57% say that it is a cross-border event which brings Europe closer together. For 39% of the participants, the ESC is a bit of healthy rivalry between all countries. For half of the participants the contest is the most entertaining show they can imagine.

The United Kingdom and Ireland came in last in this year’s final – a result their fans certainly did not expect. Whereas 23% of the UK fans reckoned that Scooch would rank at the bottom of the table, only 7,45% thought that this could happen to Dervish who represented Ireland in this year’s contest.
The ESC 2007 once again led to heated discussions about the so-called ‘political/neighbourly voting’. Whereas the majority of survey participants assume that the voting habits to be slightly political (51%), 30% come to the conclusion that political voting does not play any role at all. 16% however complain that political voting makes the contest’s outcome very predictable.

But is the ESC really predictable? As the survey was carried out prior to the event, one can compare the predictions with the actual outcome.

Predicted outcome/ (actual result)
1. Greece (#7)
2. Sweden (#18)
3. Switzerland (not qualified for final)
4. Serbia (#1)
5. Belarus (#6)

Demandi is an independent information and survey platform concerning all areas of social, cultural and political themes within Europe.

For more information about the Results of the "Eurovision Song Contest 2007" survey click HERE