Athens has now hinted that it too can barely afford the 120,000 euro (156,000 dollar) fee, saying a flamboyant show was not appropriate at a time of austerity. "Greece's state broadcaster should not participate in the Eurovision contest out of respect for the overriding public sentiment," government spokesman Simos Kedikoglou said in an interview with Vima radio.
Sources at Greek State Broadcaster ERT told dpa that a decision to withdraw from next year's event has already been discussed and unless a private sponsor can be found, Athens will be forced to withdraw from the contest. "We are worried that this year we will likely not be able to participate in the song contest - this will depend on whether or not we can get a sponsor to cover most of the costs which include 100-120,000 euros for the TV rights and another 150-180,000 euros to cover promotion and travel expenses for the singers and dancers," said the official who asked to not be named.
"We are living through difficult times here in Greece and this has also affected the state television broadcaster." However, for many in Greece the song contest often described as tacky, politicised and rarely capable of attracting top quality artists - will not be missed.
"It is a provocation if Greece participates this year - that money could be used to help feed the homeless," said journalist Giorgos Hazidimitriou from the economic newspaper Imerisia. Taking part in a recent rally to protest a wave of austerity measures that has taken its toll on the labour market and pushed the country in a sixth year of recession, 22-year-old university student Sophia Economopoulou, agrees.
"Who cares if Greece participates in Eurovision? - in reality it is a lot of money spent on nothing and does not help with the cultural development or promotion of the country." Greece has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest some 33 times since 1974, although it missed participation six times between 1975 and 2000. It ended up winning for the first and only time in 2005 with Helena Paparizou's My Number One.
Until a week ago, Cyprus was also seriously contemplating pulling out of the competition, fearing it would be seen as offensive at a time when the country was imposing drastic belt tightening measures on its population. "Cyprus will participate in this year's Eurovision Song Contest ... this years participation in the song contest will be held in the spirit of austerity and without making unnecessary costs," Cyprus state broadcaster RIK said in a statement.
"This is very popular for Cypriot viewers which see it as an entertaining and high quality programme that does not burden the budget of RIK. In contrast, the last few years the revenue from the organisation exceeds its costs." The rush of nations pulling out comes after Spain's participant for the 2012 contest in Baku, 33-year-old Pastor Soler, was advised to sing badly because the country would not be able to handle the expense of winning and hosting the competition in 2013.
According to the rules, the public broadcaster of the country that wins the song contest hosts the costly event the following year. Poland, which pulled out this year, will also not complete in 2013 due to financial pressures which stemmed from co-hosting the 2012 European Football Championships.
For its part Portugal, which has never finished higher than sixth place, also decided to refrain from spending money on the song contest after being forced to implement a policy of fiscal austerity. The 2012 contest, held in Baku Azerbaijan, hosted 42 countries and officials expect between 38 and 42 countries to be represented next year.