Last year, the small Balkan nation returned after an absence of a few years, and they are showing that they are here to stay, or at least for as long as possible. Regulations were recently published by the Montenegrin broadcaster (RTCG), so participation is expected, but how and when their participant will be selected, is something we’ll learn later.
Regulations hint at a national final – Montesong 2025
With the rule regulations just recently published, it is confirmed that Montenegro will stay with us for the 2026 contest, which is to be held in Vienna, Austria. How things will go, is currently still a bit of a mystery, but not so much either. The regulations mostly follow the same rules, which were set for the national final last year. There are a few small changes, but none that are worth worrying about.
It would appear, that the Montenegrin broadcaster, has taken precautious words in use, considering what happened last year. Originally, Neonoen were declared the winners, with their song “Clickbait“, but a few days after the conclusion of the national final, it was discovered that the song had been performed at a local festival, in an unreleased demo version. A decision by the EBU and RTCG was never made public in time, since the band decided to withdraw themselves instead, in order to avoid further controversy. This led the runner-up, Nina Žižić to be selected as the Montenegrin representative instead.
This time, it is fully noted in the regulation, that the submitted entries will be in full control by the Montenegrin broadcaster, whether a submitted entry is eligible or not. Should a similar situation arise, the broadcaster will take the full decision on what will happen. With that in mind, some of the rules listed as well are:
- Participants must be 16 years old, by May 1st 2026
- Authors of submissions don’t need to be local, and can submit up to 2 entries
- Performers must be local citizens
- Any submitted entry can not have been performed prior to September 1st 2025
- Submitted entries must adhere to the general rules of the Eurovision Song Contest
- Accepted entries agree to the rules and conditions set by RTCG – which include use of the submissions, taking part in special events etc.
- The national final doesn’t need to be held, and the selection can be done internally
Just to name a few certain details. More is included, but these are some of the noteworthy ones, considering the results of the last national final held in Montenegro.
Furthermore, the selection method is overall the same, as it was in 2024. A specialized jury will decide up to 16 songs, that will participate in the national final, by giving each submission a score based on Composition, Lyrics and Production value. These are the scores of each value:
- Composition – Up to 50 points
- Lyrics – Up to 30 points
- Production potential – Up to 20 points
Any submitted entry will need to score at least 75 points total, in order to still be considered for validation and potentially for the national final. Should the selection committee find the overall selection of submitted entries below expectation, the national final will be scrapped and an internal selection will be done instead.
The national final is worded as Montesong 2025, which indicates that the national final will take place before the end of 2025, and most likely mark the first national final of the 2026 season, which was the case as well for 2025. The winner of the potential national final, will be selected by a combination of a professional musical jury and the televote.
Details regarding any potential key dates are not included, but the submission period is expected to start very soon.
As pointed out before, Nina Žižić was selected to represent Montenegro on their comeback, with her song “DobrodoÅ¡li“. It was not exactly the warm welcome back the country could have hoped for, as Montenegro finished last in their semi-final, with only 12 points. All the points came from the Serbian televote.
With all that said, what do #YOU think about Montenegro remaining in the competition and what do #YOU think would be better for the country, a national final or an internal selection?
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Source(s): RTCG (document file) (In Montenegrin)
