Rarely has a Eurovision Song Contest seemed to have such a secure outcome or made such clear political positions as the one that this year kicks off in the middle of a war between two European countries.
For the first time ever, the organizer EBU has excluded a country before even sending a song and on the betting sites, Ukraine is a superior favorite to win.
That the 76-year-old music competition is an arena for politics is the rule rather than the exception, says historian Dean Vuletic, despite the EBU's opposition to political contributions.
The contributions reflect what is going on in society rather than changing something themselves, he adds.
- In recent years, a lot has been about the rights of LGBTQI people.
Since Dana International, a trans woman, won in 1998, the organizers have become more and more comfortable with the fact that Eurovision has many followers in the LGBTQI world.
The me too movement has also been noticed in the contribution's theme and texts, for example when Neta from Israel won in 2018.
Important for authoritarian leaders
The competition has not only been important for sexual minorities or the women's movement.
Even authoritarian leaders tend to think it's important to show off - and win.
- It will be an opportunity to arrange an international mega-event that does not cost as much as the Olympics.
You get an opportunity to wash your image.
Azerbaijan invested heavily in 2012 in making a regime that oppresses the opposition and the media appear more appetizing.
Another example is Franco's Spain, which is said to have bribed other countries to win the competition.
Spain won in 1969 and organized a lavish competition the following year.
- It was done to show that Spain, which was a dictatorship then, was like any other country in Western Europe, but with sun and bath.
"Many compete for attention"
This year, it looks like Ukraine, a country devastated by war in the past two months, could emerge victorious from the competition, but Dean Vuletic says the final can still deliver a surprise.
- The jury is not affected by the political situation, but by the quality of the contribution and despite the fact that Ukraine's contribution is excellent, there are many other excellent contributions that will compete for attention.
Click on the clip to hear Dean Vuletic talk about the three most controversial political decisions in the ESC and see more about Eurovision and politics in the Foreign Office: Schlager War SVT2 at 10 pm or on SVT Play from 7.30 pm.