The head of Ireland's Eurovision team has said that RTÉ needs more funding in order to flourish in the competition once again, after Ireland failed to qualify for the Grand Final.
Michael Kealy spoke to Ray D'Arcy on RTÉ Radio 1 following Wild Youth and Ireland's exit at the competition's semi-final stage on Tuesday night, marking the fourth unsuccessful attempt to qualify in a row for the country.
Mr Kealy said, in his opinion, RTÉ is "chronically underfunded" in recent years, which he felt has shown when the country attempts to put on "entertainment shows", the Irish Independent reported.
Read More: Ireland has failed to qualify for the final of the Eurovision Song Contest
Indie band Wild Youth, comprised of four Dublin friends, performed 'We Are One' on the night, and despite an impressive song and the team's best efforts, failed to qualify on the night in the Liverpool Arena.
Mr Kealy stressed that the band mates were "disappointed" following their exit, having faced huge pressure leading up to the semi-final.
He told Ray D'Arcy that a lot of "emotional capital" was spent on Ireland's entry and that the pressure to perform in Europe's biggest music television competition is immense. He commended anyone that is brave enough to do it.
The delegate highlighted the lack of funding for RTÉ in the area, which he feels, trumps the political angle to the voting system.
He said that Ireland's failure to produce a winner since 1996 "comes down to funding."
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