Eurovision 2024: The Semi-Final Allocation Draw Results!

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Malmö with a very nice event hosted a few minutes ago the draw for the semi-finals of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest.

The analyzes of the fans and not only, have been on fire for a few minutes now. Since the theories based on the pre-history of the countries in the competition, it is a first insight into how passable the qualification to the final is or not. In other words, it’s time to make our predictions, about who will go through to the final and who are the favorites to say goodbye to Malmö early…

The presenters and the handover ceremony

Presenters of the Eurovision 2024 semi-final draw were Pernilla Månsson Colt and Farah Abadi. It is worth mentioning that Pernilla Månsson Colt was also the presenter of the corresponding draw in 2013, eleven years ago when Malmö hosted the Eurovision Song Contest for the last time. Both of them are part of the SVT staff, being some of the most beloved faces of the Swedish state broadcaster.

During the draw, the ceremony of handing over and accepting the emblem of the contest took place. The mayor of Liverpool, Steven Rotheram, formally handed over the “keys to the event” to the mayor of Malmö, Katrin Stjernfeldt Jammeh.

Draw Procedure

Big 5 and Sweden

With the big winner of last year’s competition, Sweden, directly in the final, along with the Big 5 (UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain), the first part of the draw determined the semi-final that the direct finalists would vote for.

Will vote in the 1st Semi-Final:

  • Sweden
  • United Kingdom
  • Germany

Will vote in the 2nd Semi-Final:

  • Spain
  • Italy
  • France

In the semi-final that the six aforementioned countries were drawn to broadcast and vote for, the video from their dress rehearsal will also be shown. This was done at Eurovision 2016 for the first time, for reasons of equal exposure of the countries directly in the final and the countries that qualify from the semi-finals. Essentially, viewers see each entry twice during the shows.

Semi-Final Allocation Draw

The allocation draw for the two semi-finals had two parts. In the first part the 31 countries participating in the semi-finals were drawn in which of the two they will compete in. Fifteen countries will compete in the first semi-final and sixteen in the second semi-final.

In the second part, each country learned whether it will appear in the first or second half of the semi-final in which it will compete. The exact order of appearance will be determined by the EBU and the show’s producers at a later date.

1st Semi-final (May 7):

1st Half

  • Ukraine
  • Cyprus
  • Poland
  • Serbia
  • Lithuania
  • Croatia
  • Ireland

2nd Half

  • Slovenia
  • Iceland
  • Finland
  • Portugal
  • Luxembourg
  • Australia
  • Azerbaijan
  • Moldova

2nd Semi-Final (May 9):

1st Half

  • Austria
  • Malta
  • Switzerland
  • Greece
  • Czechia
  • Albania
  • Denmark
  • Armenia

2nd Half

  • Israel
  • Estonia
  • Georgia
  • Netherlands
  • Norway
  • Latvia
  • San Marino
  • Belgium

Malmö will host the 68th Eurovision Song Contest from 7 to 11 May at the Malmö Arena. The motto of this year’s event, as chosen by the organisers, is “United by Music“, retaining the motto first chosen for last year’s contest in Liverpool.

You can see the draw again through the link below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_-2hMEq5sk

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the developments regarding Eurovision 2024!

 

Eurovision 2024: Tonight the Allocation Draw!

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At 19:00 CET and live from Malmö, Sweden, the draw for the Eurovision 2024 semi-finals will take place tonight.

During today’s event, there will also be a handover of the event’s banner from the city of Liverpool to the city of Malmö. For this reason, both the Mayor of Liverpool, Steven Rotheram, and the Mayor of the Swedish city, Katrin Stjernfeldt Jammeh, will be present at today’s draw.

The hosts

The hosts of tonight’s draw for the semi-finals of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest will be Pernilla Månsson Colt and Farah Abadi. It is worth mentioning that Pernilla Månsson Colt was the presenter of the equivalent draw in 2013, eleven years ago when Malmö hosted the Eurovision Song Contest for the last time.

The draw procedure

The first part of the draw will determine which semi-final will be broadcast and voted for by each of the six countries that are directly in the final on 11 May (Sweden, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and the United Kingdom).

The second part of the draw will determine which semi-final and which half the other 31 participating countries will compete in. As in recent years, the exact order of appearance will be determined by the event producers at a later date.

The 31 countries have been divided into five pots, based on historical voting patterns as calculated by Eurovision’s official voting partner, Digame.

Drawing countries from different pots aims to reduce the likelihood of so-called neighbour voting and increases the suspense in the semi-finals.

Pots

Pot 1
  • 🇦🇱 Albania
  • 🇦🇹 Austria
  • 🇨🇭 Switzerland
  • 🇭🇷 Croatia
  • 🇷🇸 Serbia
  • 🇸🇮 Slovenia
Pot 2
  • 🇦🇺 Australia
  • 🇩🇰 Denmark
  • 🇪🇪 Estonia
  • 🇫🇮 Finland
  • 🇮🇸 Iceland
  • 🇳🇴 Norway
Pot 3
  • 🇦🇲 Armenia
  • 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan
  • 🇬🇪 Georgia
  • 🇮🇱 Israel
  • 🇱🇻 Latvia
  • 🇱🇹 Lithuania
  • 🇺🇦 Ukraine
Pot 4
  • 🇨🇾 Cyprus
  • 🇬🇷 Greece
  • 🇮🇪 Ireland
  • 🇲🇹 Malta
  • 🇵🇹 Portugal
  • 🇸🇲 San Marino
Pot 5
  • 🇧🇪 Belgium
  • 🇨🇿 Czechia
  • 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
  • 🇳🇱 Netherlands
  • 🇲🇩 Moldova
  • 🇵🇱 Poland

https://twitter.com/Eurovision/status/1751972070479565001

So in the evening, we all tune in for the draw of the semi-finals of our favourite contest. You can watch the draw on the official Eurovision channel on YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_-2hMEq5sk

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the developments regarding Eurovision 2024!

Eurovision Odds: Iceland drop to third place | Ukraine is back on top!

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We told you that this year requires patience and strong nerves, since it seems that we will not have a clear favorite, at least until the rehearsals start. The song of the Palestinian origin Bashar Murad, in the Icelandic national final, does not seem to have convinced the betting companies he can bring the coveted prize to Reykjavik, so Iceland has now fallen in third place, with a continuous upward trend in its returns. At the top once again this year, the usual suspect Ukraine!

The negative trend that started from the moment of the announcement of the candidate songs of Söngvakeppnin, the national final of Iceland, had the expected result of the fall of the northernmost European country from the top of the betting table. Ukraine took advantage of this update, returned to the top after a few days in the second place.

Iceland’s decline has been such that the United Kingdom has now overtaken it in second place, with Iceland in third. In fourth and fifth place are the two countries with the most competitive national finals of all, namely Italy and Sweden, with the candidate songs for Sanremo and Melodifestivalen respectively yet to be announced. Israel closes the top 6, but its returns have been on a continuous rise in the last period of time.

The many changes we’ve seen this year at the top of the odds portend an exciting year where we won’t know the winner early on, as has been the case in the previous two seasons. Always, of course, under the condition that there won’t be a song that stands out and the betting companies anoint it as an unwavering favorite, as happened with Stefania and Tattoo. We are probably heading for a repeat of 2021, which did not clear things up even in rehearsals, since we had 3-4 songs that were betting on almost equal terms for victory.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the updates!

Eurovision 2024: The Semi-final allocation pots!

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The Semi-Final Allocation Draw 2024 will take place tomorrow Tuesday 30 January at 19:00 CET live from Malmo, alongside a ceremony which sees the Host City insignia pass from previous hosts Liverpool to Malmo.

https://youtu.be/Q_-2hMEq5sk

The draw will be hosted by Pernilla Månsson Colt and Farah Abadi and fans will be able to watch on the official Eurovision YouTube channel.

The Allocation Draw will determine whether countries participate in the First Semi-Final (Tuesday 7 May at 21:00 CEST) or the Second Semi-Final (Thursday 9 May at 21:00 CEST). Also randomly allocated is whether a country will perform in the first or second half of the Semi-Final they’ve drawn.

Semi-Final Allocation Draw: How does it work?

Sweden as the Host Country and reigning champion respectively, along with the other 6 members of the so-called ‘Big 6’ participating countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and United Kingdom) do not compete in the Semi-Finals, but their domestic audiences do get to vote in one of them… so before the competing countries are allocated a place in a Semi-Final, it will be randomly determined which of the Semi-Finals the Big 6 will each be allowed to vote on.

The next part of the draw will determine in which Semi-Final and in which half of the respective Semi-Final the other 31 participating countries will perform in.

Semi-Final Allocation Pots 2024

Pot 1

Pot 2

Pot 3
  • Albania
  • Austria
  • Switzerland
  • Croatia
  • Serbia
  • Slovenia
  • Denmark
  • Australia
  • Finland
  • Iceland
  • Norway
  • Estonia
  • Armenia
  • Azerbaijan
  • Georgia
  • Israel
  • Latvia
  • Lithuania
  • Ukraine

Pot 4

Pot 5

Pot 6
  • Cyprus
  • Greece
  • Ireland
  • Malta
  • Portugal
  • San Marino
  • Belgium
  • Czech Republic
  • Netherlands
  • Moldova
  • Poland
  • Luxembourg
  • France
  • Italy
  • Germany
  • Spain
  • United Kingdom
  • Sweden

 

Drawing countries from different pots helps to reduce the chance of so-called neighbourly voting and increases suspense in the Semi-Finals. You can get a good idea of how it will all work by watching the 2022 Allocation Draw on the official Eurovision YouTube channel.

The Eurovision Song Contest is due to take place on 7, 9 and 11 May 2024 in Malmo, Sweden, who won the Contest thanks to Loreen winning in 2023.

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun for all the updates!

Source: Eurovision.tv

Iceland: Bashar Murad has not decided whether he will take part in Eurovision 2024!

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Bashar Murad is, so to speak, the face of the days. The artist of Palestinian origin, who is one of the ten candidates in Iceland’s national final for Eurovision 2024, says in an interview on the country’s public television that he has not decided whether he will participate in the contest, since of course he is the winner of Söngvakeppnin .

The news of Bashar Murad’s participation in Söngvakeppnin, before we had even heard his song, was enough to propel Iceland to the top of the betting table.

Bashar Murad rose to prominence in Iceland after collaborating with Hatari in 2019, right after Eurovision ended that year. In an interview with RUV, Bashar Murad denies the accusations that his participation is essentially a tool of political exploitation, while he answers that he has not yet decided whether he will finally participate in Eurovision 2024, since he is the winner of Söngvakeppnin.

We actually started working on this project a year and a half ago and considered participating in the competition last year (2023). But we decided it would be best to wait another year. So the work on this started in August last year…And who knows what will happen? It also depends on the situation we are in. Things change day by day. I take it one day at a time.

RUV has declared that its participation in Eurovision 2024 is not a given and the decision on this will be made after the end of Söngvakeppnin, in consultation with the winner of course.

Iceland will decide on Eurovision 2024 on March 2. You can listen to Bashar Murad’s Wild West in the video below:

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the updates!

Source: RUV

Iceland: Listen to the songs of Söngvakeppnin 2024!

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RÚV, the public broadcaster of Iceland is going to select its representative for Eurovision 2024, once again through Söngvakeppnin, the country’s national final!

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Iceland: First favourite to win Eurovision 2024 according to the bookies!

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It took Iceland around 24 hours to climb to the top of the betting table in terms of the likelihood of winning Eurovision 2024. The news that among the candidates in Söngvakeppnin 2024, the country’s national final for the contest, there is a Palestinian artist among them, has sent Iceland’s odds plummeting and now the possibility of its first ever Eurovision win is more likely than ever, at least according to betting companies.

The announcement by Icelandic public broadcaster RUV that among the 10 candidates for the semi-finals of Söngvakeppnin 2024, there is also Palestinian Bashar Murad, brought a strong shock to the Bookers. Iceland may be thinking about their participation in Eurovision 2024 and even “threatening” to pull out of the contest, but the message sent out by the participation of a Palestinian artist in the country’s national final and Iceland‘s eventual representation in Malmö by him, is apparently enough in its favour to put it at the top of the betting in terms of the possibility of winning Eurovision 2024.

So Iceland have now passed superpower Ukraine who have been at the top for days now, and the UK who via BBC and with their superstar Olly Alexander as their representative are aiming very high this year, leaving them in second and third place respectively.

RUV revealed that they will make their final decision on whether or not to participate in the upcoming song contest after the end of Söngvakeppnin 2024, and in consultation with the winner. Iceland‘s national final concludes on March 2, so we will know then if Iceland will finally make it to this year’s competition or not.

Of course, in this year’s very fluid landscape, all of the above can easily be overturned. Either because Bashar Murad‘s song with which he will participate in the Icelandic national final will not be the expected one, or because the Palestinian artist will not win in Söngvakeppnin after all and will not be the one who will be nominated to represent Iceland in Malmö. In that case, everyone who rushed in the last few hours to put their money on a possible Icelandic victory will have blown their money.

The many swings we have seen at the top of the betting this year bode well for an exciting year where we will not know the winner early on, as has been the case in the past two seasons. Always, of course, under the condition that no one song will emerge as a standout and the betting companies will anoint it as the firm favourite, as happened with Stefania and Tattoo. We are probably heading towards a repeat of 2021, where things were not even clear in rehearsals, as we had 3-4 songs that were almost equally contested by bettors to win.

Do you think Iceland will be able to get their first win in May in Malmö? Tell us in the comments below!

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the developments!

Iceland: The decision about the country’s Eurovision 2024 participation will be made by RUV

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Iceland‘s public broadcaster RUV provided clarification in an official statement regarding some of the earlier reports about the country’s participation in Eurovision 2024. According to announcements made on RUV’s website, the winning artist at Söngvakeppnin is not the only one who will have the last say over whether or not Iceland will compete in the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest.

Iceland’s participation is still uncertain

The Söngvakeppnin finalists do not receive authority over the ultimate decision, RUV retains that authority. However, it is noted that they are unable to force someone to take part in the competition against their will.

Since many things may occur on the Gaza front, which naturally influences the decisions made by Icelandic public television, no decision has been made as of now.

It is very evident that RÚV, not the contestants, determines whether Iceland will compete in Eurovision. Naturally, the perspectives of the artists that will win the competition will be heard.

Furthermore, we don’t want to burn any bridges by, say, deciding to withdraw from Eurovision right away if things drastically shift in the middle of February or March, or something similar.

Iceland: A singer from Palestine among Söngvakeppnin 2024 contestants!

Icelandic reactions to Israel’s participation are intense

The backlash in Iceland has increased after the EBU announced last week that Israel’s public television satisfies all eligibility conditions to compete in the forthcoming competition.

The Composers’ and Creators’ Union, as well as regular Icelanders, are requesting that RUV exert pressure on the EBU to pull Israel out of the competition.

About 76 percent of respondents to an online poll by Prósent in December 2024 suggested that Israel should withdraw from Eurovision 2024, and about 60 percent argued that Iceland should not compete if Israel does.

No reaction from the rest of the Nordic countries

Should it ultimately be decided to pull out of the competition, RUV does not anticipate its decision will influence the decisions made by the other Nordic countries.

Based on the information I have, it appears that there is only conversation about Israel in Norway and to a lesser extent in Finland. For example, there is no indication of this in Denmark or Sweden. I have frequent contact with my colleagues in the Nordic region.

Voices in favor of Palestine won’t be silenced

RUV makes it abundantly evident that, as was the case with Hatari in 2019, the winner of Söngvakeppnin 2024 will not be prohibited from voicing his opinions on the matter of Palestine.

Stay tuned on Eurovisionfun for all the news regarding Eurovision 2024!

Source: RUV 

Iceland: A singer from Palestine among Söngvakeppnin 2024 contestants!

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The artists and songs for Söngvakeppnin 2024, the national final of Iceland, are going to be announced in a few days, however, we may already know one of the artists taking part.

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Iceland: The country’s participation in Malmö is uncertain!

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Just a few days before the reveal of Söngvakeppnin’s 2024, Iceland’s national selection for Eurovision 2024, entries, it appears that the nation’s participation in Malmö is not certain yet.

This uncertainty stems from Israel’s participation in Eurovision 2024, despite the ongoing conflict in Gaza. After receiving backlash and protests, RÚV has decided to reconsider the country’s participation in Malmö and take the final decision on a later stage and under some circumstances.

How will the decision be made?

Taking into consideration the political implications of the upcoming Eurovision and the pressure on broadcasters and participants regarding Israel’s participation, RÚV has decided that the winner of Söngvakeppnin 2024 will be consulted before making a final decision regarding its participation in Eurovision 2024. This implies that Söngvakeppnin 2024 will take place as expected.

According to Rúnar Freyr Gíslason, Söngvakeppnin’s 2024 manager:

Deciding with RÚV’s participation in Eurovision after Söngvakeppnin ends is completely new. The contestants who have been selected for the competition, and will be revealed on Saturday, were able to accept this result. Criticism of participation in Eurovision certainly does not go unnoticed by them.

As the Söngvakeppnin’s 2024 Final is scheduled for March 2, RÚV’s final decision is expected around mid-March.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzlTcA0OC5s&themeRefresh=1

Stay tuned to EurovisionFun for all the news!

Source: RÚV