About Israel...

2007 Result
History (1956 to 2006)
This year's entry
What I predicted...
What you thought...
What actually happened

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2007 Result

Points in Semi Final: 17
Position in Semi Final: 24th

Points in Final:
Position in Final:
More about the 2007 result for Israel

2008 Contest: Must compete in Semi Final

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History (1956 to 2006)

Israel's previous appearances: 29 year(s) out of 51 [note]
Years participated: 1973-1979; 1981-1983; 1985-1993; 1995; 1998- [note]
Best result: 1st (1978, 1979, 1998)

I've lost track of the number of times that bright sparks have said to me "Why is Israel in Eurovision? It's not even part of Europe!" Unfortunately, it's difficult to reply "It's a member of the European Broadcasting Union, so it doesn't actually matter where the country is" without sounding like a Eurogeek. Nevertheless, despite not being in Europe, Israel's record in the contest is rather good, winning three times - in 1978 ('A Ba Ni Bi'), 1979 ('Hallelujah') and 1998. The most recent of these victories was by the splendid Dana International, famed as much for being transexual (she used to be a man) as for her song 'Diva'. I'm sure women across Europe (and Israel) were wondering how a former man could look so darn good as a woman.

After a good 5th place at the Jerusalem contest in 1999, Israel struggled during the first half of the noughties, finishing 22nd in 2000 with the controversial (but ultimately not very good) 'Sa'me'akh', 16th in 2001, 12th in 2002, 19th in 2003, and 11th in the Semi Final in 2004. The 2004 entry - 'Le'ha'amin' by David d'Or - was probably the best of the lot. I thought it was rather beautiful, but David's castrato voice was evidently not to everyone's taste, hence its failure to secure a place in that year's Final.

After a string of disappointing results, some suggested that politics had played a part in Israel's lack of success - fortunately, the 2005 Israeli entry showed that if people love a particular song, they will vote for it regardless of any political judgment. Singing 'Hasheket shenish'ar', everything about Shiri Maimon's performance worked well, even (unusually) the switch into English halfway through. Having finished 7th in the Semi Final, Shiri did even better in the Final, ending up 4th and ensuring that Israel took part in the Final in 2006. Unfortunately, Eddie Butler's 'Together we are one' couldn't maintain the momentum, slumping to 23rd place with just 4 points. Israel must therefore take part in the Semi Final in 2007.
Get 'The Eurovision Song Contest: The Offical History' at Amazon.co.uk

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This year's entry

Position in Semi Final draw: 2
Position in Final draw: Failed to qualify

What I said prior to the Semi Final:
"Israel will be represented by the group Teapacks in Helsinki with the song 'Push the button'. Rightly or wrongly, the song has attracted controversy for its lyrics, even making BBC News here in the UK. 'Push the button' may attract attention on a political level, but I'm not sure it has much to offer on a musical one. The danger for Israel is that, rather like the Ukrainian entry in 2005, a song that has political resonance at home may be lost on the rest of Europe."

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What I predicted...

My prediction for Semi Final: 25th to 27th
My prediction for Final: Will not qualify
What I predicted prior to the Semi Final:
"Some people rate this song, but my feeling is that it will struggle to pick up more than a handful of points."
Want an alternative prediction? See Simon Hylands' 'Je t'adore, Eurovision!' site

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What you thought...

View the final leader board

In the run up to the Contest, 1,274 visitors to this site awarded points to their favourite songs in the Soult.com Eurovision Jury Vote 2007, voting as a representative of their own country's 'jury'. The votes awarded by representatives of each country were totalled, with each of the 42 participating countries (plus the 'Rest of the World') then awarding points - 12, 10, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 - based on the overall voting preference of its representatives. The points awarded to the entry from Israel are shown in the tables below:

Points awarded to Israel overall:
AL	0	AD	5	AM	0	AT	0	BY	0	BE	0
BA	0	BG	0	HR	0	CY	0	CZ	0	DK	0
EE	0	FI	0	FR	0	GE	0	DE	0	GR	0
HU	0	IS	0	IE	0	IL	X	LV	0	LT	0
MK	0	MT	0	MD	0	ME	6	NL	0	NO	0
PL	0	PT	0	RO	0	RU	0	RS	0	SI	0
ES	0	SE	0	CH	0	TR	0	UA	0	UK	0
WO	0	Last updated: 12 May 2007 Next scheduled update: None
Total points: 11, from 2/43 juries
Position: 33 out of 42

Points awarded to Israel in the Semi Final:
AL	0	AD	7	AM	2	AT	0	BY	0	BE	0
BA	0	BG	0	HR	0	CY	0	CZ	4	DK	0
EE	0	FI	0	FR	0	GE	4	DE	0	GR	1
HU	0	IS	0	IE	4	IL	X	LV	1	LT	0
MK	0	MT	0	MD	0	ME	7	NL	0	NO	0
PL	1	PT	0	RO	0	RU	0	RS	0	SI	0
ES	0	SE	0	CH	0	TR	0	UA	0	UK	0
WO	0	Last updated: 12 May 2007 Next scheduled update: None
Total points: 31, from 9/43 juries
Position: 17 out of 28

Points awarded to Israel in the Final:
AL	0	AD	0	AM	0	AT	0	BY	0	BE	0
BA	0	BG	0	HR	0	CY	0	CZ	0	DK	0
EE	0	FI	0	FR	0	GE	0	DE	0	GR	0
HU	0	IS	0	IE	0	IL	X	LV	0	LT	0
MK	0	MT