Liefde Is Een Kaartspel

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Liefde Is Een Kaartspel (English translation: "Love Is A Card Game") was the Belgian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1996, performed in Dutch by Lisa Del Bo.
The song was performed sixteenth on the night (following the Netherlands' Maxine & Franklin Brown with De Eerste Keer and preceding Ireland's Eimear Quinn with The Voice). At the close of voting, it had received 22 points, placing 16th in a field of 23.

The song features Del Bo likening love to a card game. She describes a relationship which appears not to have been based on honesty, which explains the metaphor.

Due to the Contest's rapid expansion, entry in the 1997 Contest was limited to those countries with the best average scores over the past five years - a group of which Belgium was not a member. As a "passive country" (one which broadcast but did not enter the Contest), Belgium was however able to enter the 1998 Contest. Thus, the song was succeeded as Belgian representative at the 1998 Contest by Mélanie Cohl singing Dis Oui.

The song became part of a controversy after it was claimed that the 2001 Swedish Eurovision entry 'Listen To Your Heartbeat' was plagiarised from it. At first this was denied by the Swedish songwriters (one of whom was Thomas G:son), but after the Belgian songwriters pressed for legal action, a cash settlement was agreed. [1]