Eurovision Song Contest 2013: Political votes that WILL happen on grand final night

It’s the grand final of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday and in all likelihood the hot topic of conversation won't be about the music, the costumes or the singers. No, most of the post-show chatter will gravitate around the glaringly blatant political voting.

There’s no denying it’s a controversial subject in Eurovision world, but in the tongue-in-cheek spirit of the contest Yahoo! News has scrutinised the current political and cultural climate across Europe and come up with the following voting predictions. Which countries will hop into bed together? Who will only be too ready to award 'nil points' to the opposition? Hello Malmo, this is London calling...

Germany will receive 'nil points' from Greece

The Greeks are furious about the stringent austerity measures imposed on their country,  driven by German chancellor Angela Merkel, in return for their bailout package worth billions of Euros. Tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets when Merkel visited Athens at the end of last year provoking violent clashes. Whether Germany’s entrant Cascada can win the Greeks around with her optimistic song ‘Glorious’ remains to be seen, while the Greeks certainly won’t buy in any favours from Germany with their song ‘Alcohol Is Free.’ Austerity measures? What austerity measures?

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Armenia will receive 'nil points' from Azerbaijan
Armenia and Azerbaijan fought a war in the 1990s over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Although a ceasefire has been declared, no final peace deal has been reached. The countries also have a contentious history when it comes to Eurovision. It’s alleged that after the 2009 contest, the few residents of Azerbaijan who voted for Armenia’s contestant were hauled in for questioning by Government officials. Last year Armenia pulled out of the contest which was hosted by Azerbaijan. Null points each then.

Sweden will receive 12 points from Norway

Part of the ‘Viking Empire’, Norway and Sweden are known for awarding high marks to each other during the history of Eurovision. The two countries share similar cultures and although they have different languages, Swedish and Norwegians have much in common. With this year’s contest being held in Sweden, the Norwegians will want to reaffirm their allegiance to their Scandinavian neighbour. Now how does that theme tune go? ‘Everybody needs good neighbours…’

Russia will receive 12 points from Belarus

Russia is hugely important to Belarus. The two countries signed a treaty in the late 90s with the intention of providing greater economic, political and social integration. In 2011, Russia announced a deal with Belarus to sell gas at 60 per cent below the price charged to other European countries, in return for a greater share of the Belarus gas pipeline firm. This may not make them popular with some other countries in Europe - but they’ll put that down to a whole load of hot air.


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Russia will receive 10 points from Estonia
Russia is likely to benefit from the public vote in Estonia as an estimated 24 per cent of the population is Russian. Soft nationalism will come into play as the Estonian Russians vote for their ‘homeland’. The settlement of Russians in what is now Estonia, is said to date back to the 17th century, as they escaped from religious persecution. Many now live in Estonia’s capital city Tallinn - where on Saturday those phone lines will be hotting up.

UK will receive 8 points from France

The UK likes to see itself as the Eurovision underdog as it has no adjacent neighbours, took the unpopular decision of invading Iraq and the fact that it’s openly considering leaving the EU. However a new survey (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/10057328/France-is-more-euro-sceptic-than-Britain-survey-shows.html) has found that France is more euro-sceptic than the UK, with support for the EU among the French falling from 60 per cent in 2012 to 45 per cent in 2013. This new shared viewpoint, along with geographical proximity and of course the Eurostar connection, might bring the UK a few more votes from our friends across the Channel. French kisses all around.

Estonia will receive 10 points from Finland

There is a feeling of friendship between Finland and Estonia and a freedom of travel and trade. The Finnish language is also related to Estonian. Estonia has been one of the biggest contributors to Finland’s scores at Eurovision over the years and in a bid to keep its ally sweet, Finland is likely to want to return the favour. Although separated by a small stretch of water, there’s no keeping these two countries apart.

Greece will receive 12 points from Cyprus

Eurovision wouldn’t be Eurovision without the annual exchange of 12 points between Cyprus and Greece. There have only been two occasions when the countries didn’t award each other the maximum points. Although Cyprus has already come to the end of its Eurovision journey this year, it is still allowed to vote and it's highly likely its neighbour will receive the usual 12 points. But maybe it goes beyond politics -  maybe the Cypriots really do like the way the Greeks sing. It can happen - after all the UK did give Jedward, representing Ireland, maximum points in 2011. That was definitely about the music... wasn’t it?