🇩🇪 Germany is permanently withdrawing from the Junior Eurovision Song Contest

Germany has stepped away from the Junior Eurovision Song Contest entirely, with KiKA confirming it will no longer participate or air the competition.

No participation – No broadcast

In a statement, KiKA confirmed that it will neither compete in nor broadcast future editions of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest. This marks a significant shift, as Germany had previously continued airing the contest even in years where it did not compete.

The decision follows what the broadcaster described as an internal consultation process, involving editorial teams and programme management, assessing the country’s involvement in the competition.

In a statement to ESC kompakt, KiKA said:

“Following a comprehensive internal consultation process, we have decided to discontinue our participation in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest. This decision is the result of structured discussions between the editorial team, program managers, and the responsible body, the KiKA Program Commission, which carefully evaluated participation over the past few months. We thank all the young artists, their families, and our national and international partners for their trusting and inspiring collaboration. Supporting young talent remains a central concern for us, which we will continue to pursue with great dedication. We wish the competition all the best for the future and many more special musical moments.”

Germany’s Junior Eurovision journey

Germany was originally due to join the Junior Eurovision family in the initial edition of the Contest, but unexpectedly withdraw. This also happened in 2004, when Germany withdrew ahead of the Contest in Lillehammer. It wasn’t until 2020 in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic that Germany first participated in a Junior Eurovision event. Germany has participated on four occasions, the first being 2020 – when Susan performed “Stronger With You”, finishing 12th in a field of 12. Their best result occurred in 2023, when Fia placed ninth with her song “Ohne Worte”.

Germany most recently participated in the 2024 contest in Madrid, where Bjarne sang “Save the Best for Us”. He scored 14 points from the jury and 57 from the online vote, ultimately placing eleventh out of seventeen.

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News Source: ESC Kompakt
Photo Credit: KiKA