Poland changes strategy and opts for internal selection for Tel Aviv

TVP have announced that they are opting for an internal selection for Eurovision 2019 in Tel Aviv. It means Poland casts aside the national final ‘Krajowe Eliminacje’ which it used for the past three years. The nationality for the internal selection is open, meaning anyone can apply.

The terms and conditions for the 2019 Polish international selection can be read in full by following this link. The rules are standard for any type of selection. Some of the more usual rules include:

  • The act must be aged 16 or over at the time of the Eurovision Song Contest
  • The song being presented must not have been released commercially before September 1st 2018
  • The song must not be longer than 3 minutes in duration
  • No more than 6 acts on stage at any given time
  • No offensive or obscene language to be used

The act will be selected by using a panel selected by TVP, and the closing date for demos is the 5th of February.

Poland have decided that they will open up the nationality of the internal selection for their songwriters and performers, whereas previously, at least one half of the team had to be of Polish nationality.

Poland and the Eurovision jury vote

The idea of scrapping the national final was teased back in December. A quote in the article from CEO of TVP, Jacek Kurski says the following:

– Sometimes, the jury’s tastes are very strange and diverge with the tastes of people .

Poland, in the Eurovision Song Contest, generally tend to score higher with with the televoting public than they do with the juries. The video below demonstrates the debate surrounding the split in jury votes to televotes for Poland.