Spain's Eurovision contestant asked politely not to win

Pastora Soler, Spain's contestant in the Eurovision Song Contest, has been advised not to win. The country can't afford to host the event next year.

ABC (Spanish language) reports that according to the rules of the contest, the winner hosts the next Eurovision contest, annually watched by 125 million viewers worldwide. Pastora Soler, the Spanish contestant, has reportedly admitted that directors from the public broadcaster, RTVE, had jokingly implored her not to win. Soler will be performing her ballad, Quédate Conmigo ("Stay with Me"), in the video above, in the Azeri capital Baku this Saturday. Soler told ABC Punto Radio, "I think it is not the moment, neither for Spain nor for the Spanish public to win Eurovision. If we won, I think it would be impossible to stage the next edition because it costs so much money." Spain has recently introduced yet more austerity measures in an attempt to slash the public deficit and earlier this month Moody's downgraded sixteen Spanish banks. Among the austerity measures introduced, one cut has affected public television, with several popular shows canceled. Since 1956, the Eurovision contest has been won by Spain twice: in 1968 Massiel's song La La La was voted the best, and the following year Salome's Vivo Cantando was the winning choice.