North Macedonia and Montenegro pull out of Eurovision 2023 due to rising costs

Andrea from North Macedonia singing her song 'Circles' during the second semi-final at the Eurovision Song Contest in Turin this year. Credit: AP

Montenegro and North Macedonia have pulled out of next year's Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool due to rising costs and the expense of staying in the UK.

Montenegro blamed high prices in Britain as well as the registration fee national broadcasters pay to appear in the contest for pulling out.

"In addition to the significant costs of registration fees, as well as the cost of staying in Great Britain - we also faced a lack of interest from sponsors, so we decided to direct existing resources to the financing of current and planned national projects," Montenegro's public service broadcaster RTCG said.

Ukrainian entry Kalush Orchestra won the competition in Italy this year. Credit: PA Images

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Meanwhile, North Macedonia's state broadcaster MRT announced last week that it would not participate in the contest.

“The decision is in the best interest of the public, given the increased costs due to the energy crisis, which take up a large part of the budget for public services,” the broadcaster said.

The Eurovision registration fee is expected to be higher than the €39,143 ($38,100) charged in 2022.

North Macedonia has taken part in the televised event since its independence from the former Yugoslavia in 1991.The Eurovision Song Contest television shows are fully funded by the BBC and participating broadcasters.The fee differs for each country, based on its size. There is also a contribution from the host broadcaster, which varies depending on local circumstances and available resources.

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The host city, in this case Liverpool, also usually makes a contribution.

Liverpool was named as the Eurovision host city earlier this month, standing in for 2022 winners Ukraine.

Liverpool, which is twinned with the Ukrainian city of Odesa, faced Glasgow in the final run-off after a list of 20 candidates was whittled down by the BBC and European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which produces the annual event.There's huge demand for tickets and 2023 will be the first time Eurovision has been held in the UK for a quarter of a century.