We might be in the “off-season” now for the summer, but the minds of many Eurovision fans are already looking towards 2013 and what delights Sweden will offer for the fifty eighth Eurovision Song Contest.

Even now the ESC Insight team are wondering what will make the Swedish contest stand out. What changes can we expect to see, what will fans attending the Contest experience, and how will the media in Sweden and beyond react to the Contest? Let’s look into our crystal ball and make some predictions…

Sweden not shutting up about Loreen… for the whole year

Let’s be honest, Sweden is one o the countries that loves Eurovision, and their national selection process Melodifestivalen. There’s a lot of media interest in the run up to both the contests, and SVT feed the media machine rather effectively. This year there’s not going to be a month or so’s respite in June and July thanks to Loreen’s victory. Expect Sweden to remind themselves (and the world) of this fact at every opportunity.

Expect a huge rush to buy tickets

Tickets for the 2012 Eurovision finals remained available for a long time after the new Ticketmaster powered system put the previous billets on sale. That’s not going to happen in 2013. Tickets for Düsseldorf all sold out over a single morning, and we’re expecting the Swedish seats to go even faster. Gone in sixty minutes is a distinct possibility.

There will be lots to do for Eurovision fans in Stockholm

Yes, Stockholm, because we’re 99% sure it’s going to be the capital. They’ve just built a new stadium (almost if they knew they would need one), but the number of bars and clubs in the Swedish capital will be crawling with fans. To be honest even if you don’t have a ticket the buzz on the street should be more intense than any other contest in recent memory.

Visas, flights and accommodation

These should all be a lot easier than Baku. Sweden is part of The Schengen Agreement, which ensures simplified cross border arrangements for countries that are part of the agreement. There are a number of bilateral agreements as well, so many people outside of Schengen will not need a Visa – this includes UK, Australian, American and Canadian Eurovision fans!

Melodifestivalen will be even more intense

If the competition and pressure to represent Sweden was huge before, that’s going to be nothing compared to the chance to represent Sweden on home soil. It’s going to be an interesting line-up, especially in the public web-joker round.

The ‘six people on stage’ rule upped to eight.

Head of Delegation Christer Bjorkman has long pushed for Eurovision to follow the lead of Melodifestivalen in some areas. Organising the Swedish Eurovision we expect he’ll look to introduce the rule of up to eight people on-stage, but only six people who will be able to sing, allowing two extra people as dancers if so wished.

Shall we use pre-recorded backing vocals?

Again, this is a Melodifestivalen thing, where only lead vocals need to be sung live in the show. We don’t think that the other delegations will go for it, with a long and proud history of Eurovision based around live vocals. But Bjorkman will certainly put this on the table as a possibility in the future.

The biggest Eurovision ever?

The ESC Insight team don’t expect Sweden to scale back the staging or presentation of Eurovision; expect whoever the host city is to embrace the contest closer than any other city; expect a technologically advanced show on the stage and presented on television screens around the world; and expect a Contest that will look fresh, unique, and exciting compared to earlier years.

A more streamlined and economical Eurovision.

It might ring the changes in terms of size, but some changes to Eurovision to bring down the costs incurred by delegations could be on the cards as well. We’re going to look in-depth at a few of these suggestions over the summer months here on ESC Insight, especially the idea of shortening the time spent by Delegations in Sweden. Reducing the accommodation costs will help many smaller broadcasters to attend the Contest, and in the current financial climate that will be appreciated all round.

What are you hoping for from next year’s Eurovision Song Contest? Let us know in the comments (unless you’re from SVT, in which case we have very competitive consultation fees).