SVT, the Swedish national broadcaster, have announced changes to Melodifestivalen – their national selection for the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest.

30 entries, instead of 28 entries will compete in 2024. There will be five Heats in 2024, instead of four Heats and the Semi Final (Andra Chansen) round – the familiar format since 2002. Two entries will qualify direct to the Grand Final from each Heat. A further two entries will enter a ‘flash vote’ from each Heat. This vote will take place at the end of the fifth Heat, giving us the final two finalists.

Anders Wistbacka, the Melodifestivalen 2024 Project Manager, had the following to say:

“We always want to make Melodifestivalen even better and more exciting for our audience. With this completely new arrangement, we believe we can maintain viewers’ engagement throughout the season. It’s no secret that we’ve lost audiences in the Semi Finals. Now we hope to keep the excitement up through all the programmes.”

The song submission period for Melodifestivalen 2024 will take place between Friday 25th August, 08:00 BST/09:00 CEST and Friday 15th September, 22:59 BST/23:59 CEST.

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Author: Richard Taylor

Source: SVT