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Eurovision Song Contest 2025
International song competition From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Eurovision Song Contest 2025 was the 69th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It consisted of two semi-finals on 13 and 15 May and a final on 17 May 2025, held at St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland, and presented by Hazel Brugger and Sandra Studer, with Michelle Hunziker joining for the final. It was organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR), which staged the event after winning the 2024 contest for Switzerland with the song "The Code" by Nemo.
Broadcasters from thirty-seven countries participated in the contest, the same number as the previous two editions. Montenegro returned after a two-year absence, while Moldova, which had originally planned to participate, later withdrew due to economic reasons and the quality of the songs competing in its national selection. Israel's participation continued to cause controversy in the context of the Gaza war, with some participating broadcasters calling for a discussion on the issue.
The winner was Austria with the song "Wasted Love", performed by JJ and written by him along with Teodora Špirić and Thomas Thurner. Austria won the combined vote and jury vote, and placed fourth in the televote. Israel won the televote and finished in second place, with Estonia, Sweden, and Italy completing the top five. The EBU reported that the contest had a television audience of 166 million viewers in 37 European markets, an increase of three million viewers from the previous edition.
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Location
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Location of host venue and Arena Plus (red) and other contest-related sites and events (blue)
The 2025 contest took place in Basel, Switzerland, following the country's victory at the 2024 contest with the song "The Code", performed by Nemo. It was the third time that Switzerland had hosted the contest, having previously done so for the inaugural contest in 1956 and the 1989 contest, held in Lugano and Lausanne respectively. The selected venue for the contest was the 12,400-seat St. Jakobshalle, which serves as a venue for indoor sports and concert events.[7] The arena is located in the municipality of Münchenstein in Basel-Landschaft, right by the border with Basel-Stadt.[8]
The Messe and Congress Center Basel complex hosted several events related to the contest. It was the location of the Eurovision Village, which hosted performances by contest participants and local artists as well as screenings of the live shows for the general public; and the EuroClub, which organised the official after-parties and private performances by contest participants.[9] The "Turquoise Carpet" event on 11 May 2025 began at the Basel Town Hall and ran through the Middle Bridge, with the contestants and their delegations being presented before accredited press and fans, before ending at Messe Basel, where the opening ceremony was held.[10][11] The St. Jakob-Park stadium held a screening of the final along with performances by four previous Eurovision entrants,[b] with entry charged for the public; the stadium was also featured on the live broadcast and was referred to as "Arena Plus" for the occasion.[13][14][15] The Eurovision Street was located at Steinenvorstadt.[16][17]
Bidding phase
The location of the host city Basel (in blue), shortlisted cities (in green), other bidding cities (in red) and cities and towns that expressed interest but ultimately did not bid (in grey)
After Switzerland's win in the 2024 contest, the local authorities of Geneva expressed their interest in hosting the 2025 edition at Palexpo and submitted a formal application.[18][19] On the same day, the president of the Basel-Stadt government, Conradin Cramer, also expressed interest in Basel hosting the 2025 event.[20] On 12 May, Olma Hall in St. Gallen was proposed as a potential venue.[21][22]
On 13 May, Lugano, which hosted the inaugural contest in 1956, ruled out a bid to host in 2025.[23] The president of Bern's cantonal government Philippe Müller expressed his reluctance to host the contest in the de facto Swiss capital,[24] but the cantonal government itself later announced its support in organising the event in Bern.[25] Meanwhile, Zurich's city council held a "high priority" meeting to discuss a bid.[26][27] On 14 May, Lausanne, which hosted the 1989 contest, ruled out a bid to host in 2025, citing a lack of infrastructure.[28] On 15 May, Biel/Bienne declared its interest to be associated with and co-host the event.[29] On 17 May, the local government of Fribourg stated that it was examining a potential bid.[30] On 5 June, the Basel-Stadt government confirmed that it would bid, proposing St. Jakobshalle and St. Jakob-Park as possible venues.[31] On 6 June, Biel/Bienne and Bern's municipalities announced a joint bid.[32][33] On 12 June, St. Gallen announced that it would not submit a bid due to not meeting the requirements to host the event.[34]
The host broadcaster, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR), launched the bidding process on 27 May 2024, by issuing a list of requirements for interested cities.[35] Basel, Bern, Geneva, and Zurich officially declared their interest and finalised their bids on 28 June.[36][37] Representatives from the host broadcaster visited the four bidding cities in early July,[38][39] and shortlisted Basel and Geneva on 19 July.[40] On 30 August, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and SRG SSR announced Basel as the host city, with St. Jakobshalle as the chosen venue.[41][8] A referendum was held in November 2024 within the Basel-Stadt canton to approve the expenditure for organising the contest, which passed with the support of 66.6% of voters.[42]
Key:
† Host city
* Shortlisted
^ Submitted a bid
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Participants
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Eligibility for participation in the Eurovision Song Contest requires a national broadcaster with an EBU membership that is capable of receiving the contest via the Eurovision network and broadcasting it live nationwide. The EBU issues invitations to participate in the contest to all members.
On 12 December 2024, the EBU initially announced that broadcasters from 38 countries would participate in the 2025 contest, including Montenegro, returning after a two-year absence.[52] On 22 January 2025, Moldova announced its withdrawal, citing economic reasons and the quality of its national final, thereby reducing the number of participating countries to 37.[53]
The contest featured two returning artists for the same country: Justyna Steczkowska had previously represented Poland in 1995,[54] and Nina Žižić had appeared with Who See for Montenegro in 2013.[55] Steczkowska's return 30 years after her first appearance broke the record for the longest gap between two participations by the same artist, which was previously held by Anna Vissi with a gap of 24 years between her entries for Cyprus in 1982 and Greece in 2006.[56]
Other countries
The EBU member broadcasters in Andorra,[98] Bosnia and Herzegovina,[99] and Slovakia[100][101] confirmed non-participation prior to the announcement of the participants list by the EBU. Macedonian broadcaster MRT discussed a potential return of the country to the contest, in response to an email from Eurovision fans urging the broadcaster to do so in October 2024;[102] North Macedonia ultimately did not appear on the final list of participants for 2025. Kosovar broadcaster RTK's general director Shkumbin Ahmetxhekaj sent a formal letter to the EBU in June 2024, requesting an invitation for Kosovo to debut in the contest in 2025;[103][104] this was rejected by the EBU's General Assembly in July 2024.[105][106]
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Production and format
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The Eurovision Song Contest 2025 was produced by the Swiss national broadcaster SRG SSR.[107] The core team consisted of Reto Peritz and Moritz Stadler as executive producers,[107] and Yves Schifferle as head of show. Repeating their function from the previous edition were Christer Björkman as head of contest, Tobias Åberg as head of production, and Robin Hofwander and Fredrik Bäcklund as multi-camera directors,[4][5] with other production personnel including Nadja Burkhardt-Tracol as head of event, Manfred Winz as head of finance, Aurore Chatard as head of security, and Kevin Stuber as head of legal.[108][109] The theme art and background music's creation are overseen by art director Artur Deyneuve.[110]
The contest's organisation was restructured for 2025; this was announced by the EBU on 1 July 2024, following a review into the controversies of the 2024 contest.[111] Two new positions were created: the ESC director and the commercial director, filled by Martin Green (managing director of the 2023 contest) and Jurian van der Meer, respectively;[3][112] Green would oversee the work of executive supervisor Martin Österdahl and Van der Meer.[113][114] In response to the circumstances that led to the disqualification of the 2024 Dutch entrant Joost Klein from that year's final, from 2025 onwards, no behind-the-scenes filming of the artists would be permitted without prior approval from their delegations' head of press.[115] A set of conduct rules and duty of care guidelines was codified and made mandatory for all personnel working in the event.[116]
The preliminary budget was estimated to be at CHF 61 million (€65.2 million), with the Executive Council of Basel-Stadt contributing CHF 35 million (€37.3 million), SRG SSR contributing CHF 20 million (€21.4 million), and the EBU contributing CHF 6 million (€6.4 million).[117]
Visual, sound, and stage design
On 16 December 2024, SRG SSR unveiled the theme art and stage design for the 2025 contest.[118] The theme art, designed by the London-based agency Not Wieden+Kennedy and named "Unity Shapes Love", was built on variably-coloured miniatures of the "Eurovision heart" being arranged to emulate the halftone pixelation effect, symbolising millions of people unified by the Eurovision Song Contest, to listen and celebrate together
.[119][120] The theme music, produced by MassiveMusic and titled "See You Radiate", featured nods to Swiss traditional music and is adaptable for future editions.[121][122] Devised for the second year in a row by German production designer Florian Wieder, who had previously designed the sets of seven previous contests, the stage was inspired by Switzerland's mountains and linguistic diversity, highlighted by a central extension that extends into the standing audience area and surrounded by an LED arch.[110][123]
On 26 February 2025, SRG SSR unveiled a mascot for the 2025 contest, in a first for the event since 1992. Named "Lumo" and designed by Lynn Brunner of the Basel Academy of Art and Design, it is an anthropomorphic heart shape with orange curly hair.[124]
Postcards
The "postcards" were short video introductions shown on television while the stage is being prepared for the next entry. Filmed between January and April 2025 and directed by Luca Zurfluh of Zurich-based production company Dynamic Frame, the postcards featured the competing artists taking part in local activities across Switzerland.[125][126][127] The following locations were used for each participating country:[128][129]
Albania – Basel, Basel-Stadt
Armenia – Betlis, Canton of St. Gallen
Australia – Bern, Canton of Bern
Austria – Emmental, Canton of Bern
Azerbaijan – Zurich, Canton of Zurich
Belgium – Jungfraujoch, Valais and Bern
Croatia – Zermatt, Valais
Cyprus – Basel, Basel-Stadt
Czechia – Riburg, Aargau
Denmark – Gruyères, Fribourg
Estonia – Basel, Basel-Stadt
Finland – Appenzell, Appenzell Innerrhoden
France – Ascona, Ticino
Georgia – Geneva, Canton of Geneva
Germany – Basel, Basel-Stadt
Greece – Peccia, Ticino
Iceland – Rapperswil, St. Gallen
Ireland – CERN, Meyrin, Canton of Geneva
Israel – Morcote, Ticino
Italy – Basel, Basel-Stadt
Latvia – Zurich, Canton of Zurich
Lithuania – Basel, Basel-Stadt
Luxembourg – Rugisbalm, Nidwalden
Malta – Le Noirmont, Canton of Jura
Montenegro – Zurich, Canton of Zurich
Netherlands – Filisur, Grisons
Norway – Egnach, Thurgau
Poland – Laax, Grisons
Portugal – Lavaux, Vaud
San Marino – Bruzella, Ticino
Serbia – Vaz/Obervaz, Grisons
Slovenia – Alp Raguta, Grisons
Spain – Lucerne, Canton of Lucerne
Sweden – Magglingen, Canton of Bern
Switzerland – Basel, Basel-Stadt
Ukraine – Basel, Basel-Stadt
United Kingdom – Zermatt, Valais
Presenters
The Swiss comedian Hazel Brugger and singer Sandra Studer – who represented Switzerland in 1991 – were announced as the presenters of the 2025 contest on 20 January 2025, and they hosted all three shows of the event; Swiss-Italian television presenter Michelle Hunziker joined them for the final.[2] Jan van Ditzhuijzen and Tanja Dankner provided commentary for the "Turquoise Carpet" and opening ceremony events, with Joël von Mutzenbecher welcoming the competing artists at the start of the carpet and Odette Hella'Grand interviewing them at the end of the route.[130] The public screening of the final at St. Jakob-Park was hosted by Sven Epiney and Mélanie Freymond, both of whom also announced the points of the Swiss jury from the stadium.[131] Epiney additionally moderated the winner's press conference.[132][133]
Semi-final allocation draw
Participating countries in the first semi-final
Pre-qualified for the final but also voting in the first semi-final
Participating countries in the second semi-final
Pre-qualified for the final but also voting in the second semi-final
The draw to determine the participating countries' semi-finals took place on 28 January 2025 at 12:30 CET, at the auditorium of the Kunstmuseum Basel.[134][135] The thirty-one semi-finalists were divided over five pots, based on historical voting patterns, with the purpose of reducing the chance of bloc voting and increasing suspense in the semi-finals. The draw also determined which semi-final each of the six automatic qualifiers – host country Switzerland and "Big Five" countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) – would vote in, be required to broadcast, and perform its entry in a non-competitive capacity.[134][136] The ceremony was hosted by Jennifer Bosshard and Jan van Ditzhuijzen,[137] and included the symbolic transfer of duties from Carina Nilsson, the president of previous host city Malmö's council, to Conradin Cramer, the president of the Basel-Stadt government.[138] The host city insignia, which had traditionally been used since 2007, was replaced by a dress gifted by Nilsson to Cramer,[139] the first "friendship gift" that would replace the host city insignia from this year.[140]
Flag policy
The flag policy was updated for 2025, with competing artists allowed to display only the flag of the country they represent in official capacities – including onstage, in the green room, Turquoise Carpet, and the Eurovision Village. On the other hand, the policy overturned a previous ban for the audience, allowing the display of any flag permitted under Swiss law, including pride flags, Palestinian flags, and the flag of Europe.[141][142][143] While accepting the policy, Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS stated that it would push for changes for the following year's contest;[144] the broadcaster had earlier met with LGBTQ+ advocacy group COC Nederland, which called the ban on pride flags for competing artists "outrageously ridiculous".[145][146] Glenn Micallef, the European Union (EU)'s cultural commissioner, also criticised similar restrictions on displaying the EU flag for competing artists.[147]
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Contest overview
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Changes to the process of revealing the semi-final qualifiers were implemented with this year's edition. For the first nine qualifiers, countries would be called in sets of three via split-screen, with one progressing to the final at a time. The final qualifier would then be announced while the hosts are onscreen.[148]
Semi-final 1
The first semi-final took place on 13 May 2025 at 21:00 CEST.[149] Fifteen countries competed in the first semi-final. Those countries plus Italy, Spain and Switzerland, as well as non-participating countries under an aggregated "Rest of the World" vote, voted in this semi-final.[150] The running order (R/O) was determined by the contest producers and was announced publicly on 27 March. In addition to the competing entries, Spain, Italy and Switzerland performed their entries during the show, appearing on stage after the entries from Estonia, Belgium and Croatia, respectively.[151] Ukraine was awarded the most points in the semi-final, and qualified for the final alongside, in order of points total, Albania, the Netherlands, Sweden, Estonia, Iceland, Poland, Norway, Portugal, and San Marino. The countries that failed to reach the final were Cyprus, Croatia, Slovenia, Belgium, and Azerbaijan.[152]
This semi-final was opened by a troupe of dancers, yodelers and alphorn players performing Swiss-style renditions of four previous winning songs: "Tattoo" (2023), "Arcade" (2019), "Waterloo" (1974), and "The Code" (2024). The interval acts included "Made in Switzerland", a musical number performed by presenters Hazel Brugger and Sandra Studer which highlights and satirises Swiss stereotypes and inventions, written by Christian Knecht and Lukas Hobi, with an appearance by Petra Mede, who had previously hosted the contest in 2013, 2016, and 2024; and four former participants from 2024 – Greece's Marina Satti, Ukraine's Jerry Heil, Portugal's Iolanda, and Lithuania's Silvester Belt – performing the 1988 Swiss winning entry "Ne partez pas sans moi", preceded by a pre-recorded message from the song's original performer, Céline Dion. Jørgen Olsen, who won for Denmark in 2000 alongside his brother Niels Olsen, performed that year's winning song "Fly on the Wings of Love" after the qualifiers were announced, with lyrical changes referencing the contest's permanent slogan "United by Music".[153][154][155][156]
Qualifiers
Semi-final 2
The second semi-final took place on 15 May 2025 at 21:00 CEST.[149] Sixteen countries competed in the second semi-final. Those countries plus France, Germany and the United Kingdom, as well as non-participating countries under an aggregated "Rest of the World" vote, voted in this semi-final.[150] The running order (R/O) was determined by the contest producers and was announced publicly on 27 March. In addition to the competing entries, the United Kingdom, France and Germany performed their entries during the show, appearing on stage after the entries from Austria, Georgia and Israel, respectively.[151] Israel was awarded the most points in the semi-final, and qualified for the final alongside, in order of points total, Latvia, Finland, Greece, Austria, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Denmark, Malta, and Armenia. The countries that failed to reach the final were Australia, Czechia, Ireland, Serbia, Georgia, and Montenegro.[158]
This semi-final was opened by a monologue by Philip, a Eurovision fan, about the things he loves about the contest. The interval acts included a presentation on Swiss punctuality backed by a dance troupe performing an interpretive routine titled "On Time"; and four former participants performing their intended entries for the cancelled 2020 contest – Switzerland's Gjon's Tears with "Répondez-moi", Lithuania's The Roop with "On Fire", Azerbaijan's Efendi with "Cleopatra", and Malta's Destiny with "All of My Love". Co-presenter Sandra Studer performed the 1990 Italian winning entry, "Insieme: 1992", after the qualifiers were announced.[159][160][161]
Qualifiers
Final
The final took place on 17 May 2025 at 21:00 CEST[149] and featured 26 competing countries. All 37 participating countries with jury and televote, as well as non-participating countries under an aggregated "Rest of the World" online vote, voted in the final. The running order (R/O) of the host nation was determined by a random draw on 17 March during the annual meeting of heads of the participating delegations.[162] The running order for the remaining finalists was determined by the contest producers following the second semi-final.[163]
Austria won the contest with the song "Wasted Love", performed by JJ and written by him along with Teodora Špirić and Thomas Thurner. Austria won with 436 points, also winning the jury vote. It was the country's third win in the contest, following prior victories in 1966 and 2014.[164] Israel came second with 357 points and won the televote, with Estonia, Sweden, Italy, Greece, France, Albania, Ukraine, and Switzerland completing the top ten. Luxembourg, Denmark, Spain, Iceland, and San Marino occupied the bottom five positions.[165]
The final was opened by Nemo performing their winning song in 2024, "The Code", followed by the flag parade, introducing all twenty-six finalists, backed by the Top Secret Drum Corps. In a break between the competing songs, co-presenter Sandra Studer performed a snippet of her entry for Switzerland in 1991, "Canzone per te", while co-presenter Michelle Hunziker performed a snippet of the Italian entry in 1958, "Nel blu, dipinto di blu". The interval acts included four former Swiss participants performing their competing songs: Peter, Sue and Marc with their 1981 entry "Io senza te",[j] Paola with her 1980 entry "Cinéma", Luca Hänni with his 2019 entry "She Got Me", and Gjon's Tears with his 2021 entry "Tout l'univers"; Baby Lasagna, who represented Croatia in 2024, and Käärijä, who represented Finland in 2023, performing a mashup of their respective competing songs "Rim Tim Tagi Dim" and "Cha Cha Cha" followed by their new collaborative single "#Eurodab"; and Nemo performing their new single "Unexplainable".[167][168][169]
Winner
Spokespersons
The spokespersons announced the 12-point score from their respective country's national jury in the following order:[171][172]
- Sweden – Keyyo
- Azerbaijan – Safura
- Malta – Ingrid Sammut
- Netherlands – Chantal Janzen
- Slovenia – Lorella Flego
- Armenia – Lusine Tovmasyan
- Luxembourg – Fabienne Zwally
- San Marino – Senhit
- Ukraine – Jerry Heil
- Norway – Tom Hugo
- Austria – Philipp Hansa
- France – Émilie Mazoyer
- Italy – Topo Gigio
- Portugal – Iolanda
- Denmark – Sara Bro
- Croatia – Doris Pinčić
- Latvia – Dons
- Ireland – Nicky Byrne
- Poland – Aleksandra Budka
- Montenegro – Marko Vukčević
- Greece – Jenny Theona
- Serbia – Dragana Kosjerina
- Czechia – Radka Rosická
- United Kingdom – Sophie Ellis-Bextor
- Spain – Chanel
- Finland – Jasmin Beloued
- Australia – Silia Kapsis
- Germany – Michael Schulte
- Belgium – Manu Van Acker
- Israel – Eden Golan
- Albania – Andri Xhahu
- Lithuania – Silvester Belt
- Iceland – Hera Björk
- Georgia – Nutsa Buzaladze
- Cyprus – Loukas Hamatsos
- Estonia – Kristjan Jakobson
- Switzerland – Mélanie Freymond and Sven Epiney
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Detailed voting results
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Semi-final 1
The ten qualifiers from the first semi-final were determined solely by televoting, with the exception of San Marino which did not organise a televote, and thus used the votes of its back-up jury. All fifteen countries competing in the first semi-final voted, alongside Italy, Spain, Switzerland, and the aggregated Rest of the World vote. The ten qualifying countries were announced in no particular order, and the full results were published after the final was held.
Qualifiers
12 points
Below is a summary of all 12 points received in the first semi-final. Ukraine received the maximum score of 12 points from four countries, while Sweden received three sets of 12 points. Both Cyprus and the Netherlands received two sets of 12 points, while Albania, Belgium, Croatia, Estonia, Iceland, Norway, Poland and San Marino received one each.
Semi-final 2
The ten qualifiers from the second semi-final were determined solely by televoting. All sixteen countries competing in the second semi-final voted, alongside France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the aggregated Rest of the World vote. The ten qualifying countries were announced in no particular order, and the full results were published after the final was held.
Qualifiers
12 points
Below is a summary of all 12 points received in the second semi-final. Israel received the maximum score of 12 points from thirteen countries, followed by Armenia which received two sets of 12 points. Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro and Serbia were each awarded one set of 12 points.
Final
The results of the final were determined by televoting and jury voting in all thirty-seven participating countries, plus the Rest of the World aggregate public vote. The announcement of the jury points was conducted by each country individually, with the country's spokesperson announcing their jury's favorite entry that received 12 points, with the remaining points shown on screen. Following the completion of the jury points announcement, the public points were announced as an aggregate by the contest hosts in ascending order starting from the country which received the fewest points from the jury.
Winner
12 points
Below is a summary of all 12 points received in the final. In the jury vote, Austria received the maximum score from eight countries, followed by Italy and France with six and five sets of 12 points, respectively. Greece received four sets of 12 points, Latvia and Switzerland received three, Germany received two, and Albania, Armenia, Finland, Israel, Sweden and the United Kingdom were each awarded one set of 12 points. In the public vote, Israel received the maximum score of 12 points from twelve countries and the Rest of the World vote, followed by Estonia with five sets of 12 points, Sweden with four, Greece and Ukraine with three sets of 12 points each, Albania and Poland with two, and Armenia, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania and San Marino were each awarded one set of 12 points.
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Broadcasts
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All participating broadcasters may choose to have on-site or remote commentators providing insight and voting information to their local audience. Although they are required to, at minimum, show the final and semi-final in which their country votes, most broadcasters cover all three shows. Some non-participating broadcasters also air the contest. The Eurovision Song Contest YouTube channel provides international live streams with no commentary of all shows. The table below details the broadcasting plans and commentators for the countries that aired the contest. According to the EBU, in total 166 million people watched at least a minute of the television broadcasts, while the YouTube broadcasts culminatively garnered 19.9 million views over a seven-day period. Votes were received from 146 countries, including the 37 competing countries.[175]
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Other awards
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Marcel Bezençon Awards
The Marcel Bezençon Awards honour songs in the contest's final. They have been organised since 2002 by Sweden's then-head of delegation and 1992 representative Christer Björkman and 1984 winner Richard Herrey.[285] The awards are divided into three categories: the Artistic Award, the Composers Award, and the Press Award.[286] The winners were revealed shortly before the Eurovision final on 17 May.[287]
OGAE
OGAE, an organisation of over forty Eurovision Song Contest fan clubs across Europe and beyond, conducts an annual voting poll first held in 2002 as the Marcel Bezençon Fan Award. After all votes were cast, the top-ranked entry in the 2025 poll was Sweden's "Bara bada bastu" performed by KAJ; the top five results are shown below.[288][289][290]
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Reception
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Commercial impact
Following the 2025 contest, four entries entered the Billboard Global 200 chart dated 31 May 2025: Germany's "Baller" at number 80, Estonia's "Espresso Macchiato" at number 93, Sweden's "Bara bada bastu" at number 123, and Austria's winning entry "Wasted Love" at number 167. On the Billboard Global Excl. US chart also dated 31 May 2025, the four aforementioned entries entered at numbers 28, 33, 45, and 63, respectively, followed by Norway's "Lighter" at number 172.[291][292] Additionally, the "Made in Switzerland" interval act from the first semi-final was released as a single on 6 June 2025,[293] and peaked at number 16 on the Swiss Hitparade.[294]
Controversies on Israeli participation
Due to the continuing Gaza war, Israel's participation in the contest remained controversial, with calls for the exclusion of the country from the event.[295] The Slovenian broadcaster RTVSLO submitted a demand for the EBU to exclude Israel,[296] while Spanish broadcaster RTVE, Irish broadcaster RTÉ, Icelandic broadcaster RÚV, and Belgian broadcaster VRT called for a wider discussion among EBU members regarding Israel's participation.[297][298][299] The EBU committed to a discussion regarding Israel's involvement "in due course",[300] but reiterated that it is "an association of public service broadcasters, not governments",[301] and that all EBU members are eligible to compete.[302] 72 former Eurovision contestants signed a letter calling for Israel's exclusion, including former winners Charlie McGettigan and Salvador Sobral;[303] the previous edition's winner Nemo and this edition's winner JJ later publicly joined calls to exclude Israel.[304][305]
During the introductory postcard preceding Israel's performance in the second semi-final, RTVE's commentators Tony Aguilar and Julia Varela mentioned the number of casualties of the war. Following a complaint filed by the Israeli broadcaster Kan, the EBU warned RTVE it would be fined if its commentators "mention the Gaza conflict again".[306] Ahead of the final, RTVE aired a message that read "When human rights are at stake, silence is not an option. Peace and justice for Palestine".[307] During the final, Israel's performance was met with some booing by the audience;[308] the Swiss host broadcaster SRG SSR replaced this in the television broadcast with pre-recorded applause.[309]
Israel ultimately won the televote and finished in second place overall, prompting a number of participating broadcasters, including RTVE, VRT,[310] RÚV, Belgium's French-speaking RTBF,[311] Finland's Yle,[312] Norway's NRK,[313] RTÉ,[314] and the Netherlands' AVROTROS and NPO,[315] to call for a rework of the televoting system while also highlighting concerns over Israel's participation. RTVE, VRT, and RTÉ additionally called for an independent audit of their countries' televoting results;[310][314] the Spanish and Belgian televote awarded 12 points to Israel, while the Irish televote awarded 10.[316] Eurovision News Spotlight, a fact-checking and open-source intelligence initiative by the EBU, published an investigation on 19 May 2025 which found evidence that the Israel Government Advertising Agency had conducted a cross-platform advertising campaign and utilised official state social media accounts to encourage public support for Israel's entry in the contest, specifically providing instructions on how voters could cast all 20 of their allowed votes for Israel.[317][318] The Israeli government had previously admitted to deploying the same strategy during the 2024 contest.[319][320]
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Official album
Eurovision Song Contest: Basel 2025 is the official compilation album of the contest, featuring all 37 entries. It was put together by the European Broadcasting Union and released by Universal Music Group digitally on 18 April 2025, in CD format on 25 April 2025, and in vinyl format on 23 May 2025.[321][322][323]
Charts
Notes
- Namely Kate Ryan (Belgium 2006), Anna Rossinelli (Switzerland 2011), Luca Hänni (Switzerland 2019), and Baby Lasagna (Croatia 2024), in addition to DJ Antoine[12]
- Specifically Gheg Albanian
- Specifically the Broccolino dialect, an American variety of Italian
- Features uncredited vocals by Andrea Bonomo and Edwyn Roberts[89]
- Specifically the Vörå dialect, an Ostrobothnian variety of Finland Swedish spoken in and around Vörå
- Peter Reber and Marc Dietrich were the only members of the group to perform, joined by their respective children Nina Reber and Bruno Dietrich.[166]
- The broadcast of the second semi-final will start delayed, at 22:00 (WEST) on RTP Internacional and RTP Internacional Ásia, and at 22:30 (WEST) on RTP1 and RTP Internacional América[253]
- Including Swedish-language commentary option from SVT1 for all shows
- In simulcast of broadcast from Finland's Yle Areena
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References
External links
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