Eurovision 2025: Where and when it will take place, and everything we know.
This year's edition, which is being held in Switzerland, is warming up its engines.
BarcelonaThe FEurovision 2024 summer was one of the hottest who remember the history of the competition. Israel's participation, in the midst of the Gaza war, generated controversy and tension in a festival that always maintained that it was not political, although it banned Russia's participation after the invasion of Ukraine. A year later, things haven't changed much: Israel's siege of the Gaza Strip remains in place, and calls for the country to be barred from competing continue (RTVE officially requested that the event be opened). a debate on the suitability of their participation). However, his presence at the festival has already been confirmed and his representative will be Yuval Raphael, 24, a survivor of the October 7 Hamas attacks at the Supernova music festival.
As for Spain, The representative will be the singer Melody, the most voted option at the Benidorm Fest. Famous since the age of ten thanks to the song The Gorilla Dance, fulfills the dream of going to Eurovision after a failed first attempt. That diva, a song that plays with Spanish clichés such as the sound of castanets or the Cordoban hat that the singer wears at the beginning of the performance.
In which city will the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 be held?
This year the city that will host the Eurovision Song Contest will be Basel, since last year the winner of the song contest was the singer Nemo, representing Switzerland. The country's third most populous city beat out other candidates such as Geneva, its main rival. The festival's stage will be set up in the St. Jakobshalle stadium, with a capacity of 12,400 people. The organizers explain that the stage design is inspired by the Swiss mountains and the country's linguistic diversity. "Our goal was to create a revolutionary stage concept, a holistic experience we've never seen before at Eurovision. Thanks to the immersive stage layout, the audience will be part of Eurovision like never before," explained designer Florian Wieder, who is overseeing the production of the Eurovision stage for the eighth time.
This will be the third time Switzerland has hosted Eurovision: the first time was in 1956 in Lugano and the second was in 1989 in Lausanne.
When will Eurovision be? Date and time of the final
The 69th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest will be held in May, as is tradition. This year, the grand final is Saturday, May 17, while the two semi-finals will take place on Tuesday, May 13, and Thursday, May 15. All three galas will start at 9:00 PM and can be followed live.
How many countries are participating?
This year's Eurovision Song Contest will feature 37 countries, 31 of which will compete in the semi-finals for a place in the grand final. Montenegro is returning to the contest this year, having not competed since 2022, while Moldova has decided to withdraw. The six countries guaranteed a place in the final are known as the Big Five, a group consisting of the United Kingdom, Spain, France, Italy and Germany, and the host, Switzerland. Big Five They are not competing in the semi-finals, but they do perform so that the public has a first taste of the proposal they will take to the final, which only 26 countries reach.
The festival organizers have already shared the countries and the order of performance for each semi-final. The country that will open the first semi-final, which will be held on May 13, will be Iceland, while Cyprus will close the gala. Spain, Italy and Switzerland will perform in this first semi-final. As for the second semi-final, it will start with a performance by Australia, a non-European country that enjoys an annual invitation to compete in Eurovision, a very popular event in the country. The United Kingdom, France and Germany are the members of the Big Five who will perform at this gala.
The semi-finals and final will feature special performances by former Eurovision contestants such as Käärijä (Finland's representative in 2023) and Croatia's Baby Lasagna, who finished second last year.
Where to watch the Eurovision 2025 final
Eurovision is a festival organized by the European Broadcasting Union, which encompasses public television and radio stations across Europe. In Spain, the competition is broadcast on RTVE, which also sends the Spanish representative to the competition. The grand final is broadcast on La 1 starting at 9:00 PM and is one of the largest annual television events.
How long is the final?
Although 37 countries are competing in the Eurovision Song Contest, only 26 will be able to compete in the final. The large number of participants makes the final gala long: it usually lasts no less than four hours, and therefore the winner is usually not announced until 1:00 a.m.