In the midst of controversy over Israel’s presence in Eurovision due to the war in Gaza, the rise is as dazzling as it is unexpected. Although before the semifinal she was in the last positions of the 10 favorites according to the betting houses, Eden Golan occupies second place in this ranking this Friday, May 10, according to Eurovisionworld and Oddschecker.
According to these two sites that aggregate the odds from different online betting sites, Eden Golan is only ahead of Baby Lasagna, the Croatian candidate who has been at the top of the ranking for several weeks. However, he passed by Nemo, the singer who defends the colors of Switzerland.
On Thursday night, thanks to his song “Hurricane”, Eden Golan managed to qualify for the final and join the group of 26 countries that will compete for victory on Saturday. But does the Israeli singer’s performance alone explain her comeback? In reality, it could have a lot to do with a mistake made by Rai, the Italian public television.
Israel seeks fifth victory
During the broadcast of the semi-final, the channel disclosed the results of the votes of the transalpine viewers with a poster that moved on the screen, which is however prohibited by the regulations of the EBU (European Broadcasting Union), organizer of the competition. the event. After this blunder, Rai is exposed to a sanction from the EBU, indicates the Italian newspaper La Repubblica.
According to these figures, 39% of Italians who expressed their choice on Thursday voted for Eden Golan. Well ahead of the next two other countries, the Netherlands and Georgia, which only got around 7% of the vote.
“I am very grateful to everyone who voted for us and supported us,” said Eden Golan after the semi-final. “It is truly an honor to be here, on stage, to perform and show our voice, to present ourselves with pride.”
If the young woman were to win on Saturday, it would be the Jewish State’s fifth victory in Eurovision, the last since 2018.
Source: BFM TV
