The Irish broadcaster shelved plans for a standalone national final this year amidst a financial scandal involving Ryan Tubridy.
Scandal stopped plans this year
Speaking to The Eurotrip Podcast, RTÉ’s head of delegation, Michael Kealy spoke of his hopes to organise a standalone competition to decide Ireland’s Eurovision entry, saying “Our resources hit a buffer for a lot of self-inflicted reasons from the organisation. That suddenly caused a crunch in our ability to spend money on new endeavours.”
RTÉ found itself in hot water in 2023 when it first disclosed previously unknown payments to Ryan Tubridy, the former host of the Late Late Show. The scandal resulted in the resignation of director-general Dee Forbes.
Plans for next year
Whilst the scandal caused the plans for this year’s final to be scrapped, Kealy remains hopeful that Ireland will host a national final independent of the Late Late Show in 2025.
Healy shared his ideas for the competition saying, “I’m hopeful things may settle down later this year and our finances may be put on a more stable footing and we may hopefully have the money to do something like it next year. Let’s be hopeful.”
He also planned on including a “fan jury” this year to go alongside the Irish & international juries.
This year’s Eurosong takes place on the Late Late Show tonight at 9:35pm local time.
Ireland’s Eurovision Journey
In 1965, Ireland made their debut in the Eurovision Song Contest with Butch Moore and the song “Walking the Streets in the Rain”, which managed to place 6th. Since their debut, Ireland has participated 56 times (making the Grand Final 45 times), and has won the competition seven times, which is currently tied for the record of most wins.
Ireland’s latest Eurovision participation saw them being represented by Wild Youth, with their song “We Are One”. They placed 12th in the semi-final, receiving 10 points from the televote, missing out on the Grand Final.
Are you excited for a standalone Irish National final? Do you think Kealy’s ideas will come to fruition? As always, let us know what you think by commenting below. Also, be sure to follow ‘That Eurovision Site’ on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Threads and Bluesky for all things Ireland at Eurovision 2024!
News Source – The Eurotrip Podcast
Photo Credit – Sarah-Louise Bennett / EBU
Giwrgos Oiko