Altervision Song Contest 1

Final date
 Venue
 Broadcaster
 Interval act
 Entries
 Debuting

**Participation map**
* Countries that have confirmed their participation but have not announced their entry     Countries that have confirmed their participation and their entry, and qualified for the final     Countries that have confirmed their participation and their entry, but did not qualify to the final     Countries that participated in the past, but not in this edition
 System
 Null points

The **Altervision Song Contest 1** was the inaugural edition of the Altervision Song Contest. It took place in Prague, Czech Republic and was organised by Česka Televize following the country's appointment as the host of the first edition.

16 countries have confirmed their intention to participate in the inaugural edition. This number would be remembered as the lowest amount of participants in one edition. Due to this low amount of countries taking part, the contest consisted of only a final which was hosted by Vera Vodičkova and Iveta Jonatova.

The **1st winner of the Altervision Song Contest** was **Albania** with the song "No Maybes" performed by Ilkay Sencan, Era Istrefi and Arash, gathering a total amount of **206** points overall in the final with 89 points from the juries and 117 points from the public, passing the runner-up by **17** points. The top 5 was rounded out by the Hungary, Andorra, Spain and Sweden. The Netherlands finished in last place while the host Czech Republic ended up on 9th place. Hungary's second place would remain it's best result until the eleventh edition in Skopje, where they managed to achieve their first victory, while Andorra would go on to finish in the top 3 on numerous occasions. Spain equalled it's best result 2 editions later while Sweden won the following edition and would win on 2 more occasions.

## Location

**Prague** is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, the 13th largest city in the European Union and the historical capital of Bohemia. Situated on the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of 2.7 million. The city has a temperate oceanic climate, with relatively warm summers and chilly winters.

Prague is a political, cultural and economic centre of central Europe complete with a rich history. Founded during the Romanesque and flourishing by the Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque eras, Prague was the capital of the Kingdom of Bohemia and the main residence of several Holy Roman Emperors, most notably of Charles IV (r. 1346–1378). It was an important city to the Habsburg Monarchy and its Austro-Hungarian Empire. The city played major roles in the Bohemian and Protestant Reformation, the Thirty Years' War and in 20th-century history as the capital of Czechoslovakia between the World Wars and the post-war Communist era.

### Bidding phase

Following the announcement that stated that Česká Televize would be the host broadcaster of the first edition, the company started to seek for the host city and host venue of the contest. Four arenas in three cities were announced as possible host venues. In the end, the broadcaster announced on 6th April that the O2 Arena in Prague would serve as the host venue for the first Altervision Song Contest.

 Tipsport Arena
 Ostrava
 Pradubice

## Format

### Visual design

The slogan of the contest was unveiled on the 6th April. The slogan, "Into the Infinity", is rather an indication for a long journey the contest is here to make, as explained by Nathan, the executive supervisor of the contest. The theme artwork, featuring a white infinity symbol on a pink-purple abstract background as well as the slogan, was unveiled on the same day.

### Stage design

The official stage design was revealed on the same day as the slogan and the theme art. It was designed by Dalmatin.

## Final

Sixteen countries participated in the contest, headed by fourteen users as Dalmatin currently heads both the Czech Republic and Croatia and Møsuh heads Germany and the Netherlands. The betting odds expected Andorra, Germany, Romania or Sweden as the winner. Romania failed to vote so 35% of their score was deduced.

## Incidents

### Omega's withdrawal

Controversy surrounding the Netherlands and their dislike of the fact Croatia and the Czech Republic were run by the same person made it so original head of delegation Omega withdrew, being replaced by Møsuh. As well as this, original representative Thomas Azier withdrew his song.

## References and notes

1. ↑ Romania originally received 164 points and the 5th place, however as the HoD failed to vote, their final points have been reduced by 25%.

 First decade
 Active
 Host cities