The Eurovision Song Contest

Eurovision FAQs

What is the Eurovision Song Contest?

First, it's the longest running and most watched song contest (not talent search) in the world. Each of the participating countries hold their own selections, many with televised contests like the Voice and some others with a selection made by the participating radio-television station. Once the representatives are chosen they all go on to Eurovision Week. During this week the countries who are not the Big Five or last year's winner are whittled down to just twenty countries who go on to the Grand Final. It is at the Grand Final that the ultimate winner is chosen. The winning country hosts the contest the following year.

How is the winner chosen?

The country with the highest number of votes wins. Each of the participating countries will give out two sets of points. Half of the points come from juries and half from the public. The juries give douze points to their top favorite, ten points to their second favorite, and eight through one points for the remaining top ten. Televoters will be able to pay a small fee to do the same thing by calling, texting, or using the Eurovision app to submit their votes. No country can vote for their own country. All thirty-seven participating countries can vote for the twenty-six songs that make it to the Grand Final. After all 2146 points from the juries are given out country by country, the 2146 points from the public vote will be given out starting from the country who earned the least amount of points from the juries to the country who earned the most.

What is the format of the Grand Final?

There will be a dramatic and theatrical opening ceremony, usually consisting of a performance of some sort, a  flag ceremony to recognize all of the delegates, and then the hosts will come in to entertain us while we wait for the official performance of the first country in the running order. Before each of the twenty-six countries there will be a postcard that we will see while they set up the stage. There are usually short breaks in the running order where the hosts will entertain us or interview the delegates (during which TV channels air commercials). After all twenty-six countries have performed, the voting lines open to the public and the interval act(s) begin. This will again be a combination of some showy performance and the hosts doing their thing. Once the final countdown happens for the close of the voting, there will be a short break to count up the votes, sometimes accompanied by a performance. And then the voting sequence begins. The voting sequence will begin with each jury presenting their votes and will end with the pooled public votes being given out until a winner is chosen. 

I missed the ranking party. How do I sort my favorite songs easily?

http://yourhuman.ucoz.ru/Pages/eurovision/2022ESC01.html uses an algorithm that lets you "battle" songs until they are all in order. You can also use Excel/Google Sheets to sort the songs into three groups like top favorite, middle favorite, and least favorite and just keep doing that with the groups until everything is sorted. Alternatively, you can create categories for things that you can judge about the songs and then deal out points in those categories. After adding up all the songs' individual points, you should be close to having a ranking. Whichever method you choose, remember that you can always shift things around as you like and that the exact order doesn't matter. Just have fun and get emotionally invested. 🥳

What about the party? Will we just be watching the show?

It's up to you really. There will be word searches, betting (for treats), flag coloring pages, ranking sheets, bingo + beanboozled, and the foreign snacks and dishes that everyone will bring. You don't have to participate in the activities, but they should be fun. The word searches are short and sweet. The bets will be submitted before the voting sequence begins. The flag coloring pages are encouraged for the country you are rooting for. The ranking sheets are for those who like to express their opinions in an organized manner. The bingo is a fun party game to learn about the culture of the contest with the added risk of beanboozled 😉. And don't forget to bring a foreign treat and/or paraphernalia to celebrate other cultures. 

Confused about all these weird terms? Check out the dictionary of ESC jargon here.

Click on any country below to learn more or click here to see charts about all countries in the contest