As announced via Eurovision.tv today, this year’s edition of the Eurovision Song Contest will be impacted by a brand-new change: the introduction of a ‘producer’s choice’ option when countries draw their Grand Final running order placement.

Previously there were only two outcomes when qualifying artists were drawing their spot in the Grand Final running order, ‘first half’ and ‘second half’. Now, the addition of a ‘producer’s choice’ option allows producers to freely decide which half the artist will perform in, in order to ‘give producers of the show even more of an opportunity to make all songs in the Grand Final stand out and create the most exciting running order possible’.

The change means there will now be 6 places to pick in the First Half of the running order, 6 places that can be chosen in the Second Half and 13 Producer’s Choice places.

Christer Björkman, Producer of this year’s contest in Malmö, had this to say about the change:

“It’s all about creating the best TV show possible and giving all artists a chance to shine. In previous years, with just the First Half and Second Half draws you might find many ballads ended up in the same part of the show or many favourites were drawn to perform in the same half. Adding the flexibility of Producer’s Choice gives me the ability to create an even better flow of different tempos and an even more thrilling Grand Final.”

What do you think of this new system? Will it make for a more entertaining show in Malmö – or give some countries unfair advantages? Let us know down below, or get in touch on our socials.