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Eurovision semi-finals preview
As the excitement builds for the most anticipated musical event of the year, we look through the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest semi-finals.
Join us as we delve into the location, the lineup, and the chances for the countries in each semi-final, exploring the talented performers vying for a spot in the final.
Where and When?
The first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest is taking place on Tuesday 7th May. 15 semi-finalists will perform at the Malmö Arena in Sweden, 10 of which will make it through to the grand final on Saturday 11th May.
Another 16 countries will take to the Swedish stage on May 9th.
‘The Big Five’
In the Eurovision Song Contest there are ‘The Big Five’ countries which consist of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, as well as host country Sweden, following Loreen’s incredible win in Liverpool last year, who are already pre-qualified for the main event. The completed line-up will be determined by the semi-finals where 20 countries will be added.
Although the UK does not have to compete at this stage, each of the automatic qualifiers is given the chance to vote in one of the semi-finals. This year, the UK is voting in the second semi-final on Thursday, May the 11th.
Semi-Final 1
Croatia (1/4) are the clear favourites leading up to the first semi-final, they are also 11/10 favourites to win the final itself. Next In the market are Ukraine (4/1), alyona alyona & Jerry Heil’s song has captured the hearts of the public.
Ireland and Bambie Thug are 10/1 to win semi-final 1, they have added motivation to get the crown back from Sweden this year as they’ve both won Eurovision a record seven times. Finland (16/1) have also seen some support in the build-up to the first semi-final. Lithuania are the other country worth mentioning who have attracted some fans (28/1).
The other ten countries who will be taking part in Semi-final 1 are:
Poland – 66/1
Serbia – 80/1
Luxembourg – 80/1
Cyprus – 80/1
Portugal – 100/1
Australia – 100/1
Azerbaijan – 150/1
Slovenia – 150/1
Iceland – 250/1
Moldova – 250/1
Ireland, Moldova & Luxembourg All To Qualify is now an enhanced price of 5/1.
Semi-Final 2
Netherlands are the 4/9 favourites to win the second semi-final with their song ‘Europapa’ performed by Joost Klein. Nemo is set to perform ‘The Code’ for Switzerland and seems to be a real hit, so there’s no surprise that they are 4/1 to win their semi-final.
Of the other countries which have decreased noticeably in price, Israel’s contender Eden Golan clearly wants to unite people through her music and people have backed her into 8/1. Armenia and Norway have seen support and both sit at 20/1 to win the second semi-final. Greece are just beyond that at 25/1.
The other ten countries who will be taking part in Semi-final 2 are:
Georgia – 33/1
Austria – 33/1
Belgium – 40/1
Estonia – 50/1
Denmark – 250/1
Latvia – 250/1
San Marino – 250/1
Malta – 250/1
Czech Republic – 250/1
Albania – 250/1
