Following news that HRT will be airing Junior Eurovision 2024 on November 16, it is being reported that the broadcaster is examining a return to the contest.
Nothing set in stone, but possible pathways revealed
Croatia’s Head of Delegation Tomislav Štengl appeared on Dobro jutro, Hrvatska’, where he explained about the idea of returning:
We are one of the countries that were among the first countries to participate in the children’s Eurovision Song Contest. And we didn’t just participate – we won. And in the second competition, we were second. After that, we didn’t have such strong results, but the idea is to come back
Speaking about rhe return, he mentioned about how Croatia could select their entry, should they end up participating in 2025:
Our wish is that next year, for example, the winner of the competition ‘The Voice Kids Hrvatska’ participates in the children’s Eurovision Song Contest. There are certain prerequisites that the competitor must satisfy. For example the song with which you go to the children’s Eurosong should be a song written by a child with the help of adults. Which means it must have a creative element
Croatia’s Junior Eurovision Journey
Croatia was one of the first participants at the first edition of the Contest in 2003. Croatia would eventually win the first ever Junior Eurovision Song Contest, being represented by Dino Jelusić singing “Ti si moja prva ljubav”. Croatia would score a third place result the following year, before seeing a dip in results and withdrawing before the 2007 Contest.
Croatia’s most recent participation was in 2014, when Josie brought Croatia back to the Contest after an eight-year break. Singing her song “Game Over”, Croatia finished 16th in a field of 16, receiving 13 points. Croatia has since withdrawn from participation again.
What are your thoughts on this latest development? Would you like to see Croatia return to the competition? As always, let us know what you think by commenting down below. Also, be sure to follow ‘That Eurovision Site’ on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, Threads and Bluesky as we prepare for Junior Eurovision 2024!
News Source: HRT
Photo Credit: EBU
Giwrgos Oiko 
Silvia Stifini 
Rory Gannon