Recommendations of the Editorial team
On Thursday evening (May 15th), the second semi -finals of the 69th Eurovision Song Contest took place in the St. Jakobshalle in Basel. 16 countries competed to secure one of the last ten places for the grand finale on Saturday (May 17th). The show started at 9:00 p.m. and was transferred to One, ORF 1, SRF 1 as well as online at Eurovision.de and the ARD Mediathek.
The moderators Hazel Brugger and Sandra Studer led through the evening. As usual since 2023, the audience only decided on the final qualification by televoting; A jury voting was no longer used. In addition to the participant countries, the “Big Five” countries Germany, France and the United Kingdom were also voting.
The ten finalists
The following ten countries were able to qualify for the final of the Eurovision Song Contest by televoting:
- Lithuania
- Israel
- Armenia
- Denmark
- Austria
- Luxembourg
- Finland
- Latvia
- Malta
- Greece
These ten countries complete the field of participants in the final on Saturday, which includes a total of 26 acts: the ten winners from the first semi -finals, the ten winners from the second and the six states set (Germany, France, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom and host country Switzerland).
The following countries did not make it:
- Montenegro
- Australia
- Ireland
- Georgia
- Czech Republic
- Serbia
Eurovision Song Contest 2025: All participating countries at a glance
Sweden – Kaj with “Bara Bada Bastu”
Norway – Kyle Alessandro with “Lighter”
Ukraine – Ziperblat with “Bird of Pray”
Island – Væb with “Róa”
Netherlands – Claude with “C’est la vie”
Poland – Justyna Steczkowska with “Gaja”
San Marino – Gabry Ponte with “Tutta l’Italia”
Estonia – Tommy Cash with “Espresso Macchiato”
Portugal – Napa with “Deslocado”
Albania – Shkodra Elektronike with “Zjerm”
Germany – Abor & Tynna with “Baller”
France – Louane with “Maman”
Italy – Lucio Corsi with “Volevo Essere Un Duro”
Spain – Melody with “Esa Diva”
United Kingdom – Remember Monday with “What the Hell Just Happened?”
Switzerland (host country) – Zoë Më with “Voyage”
Lithuania – Qatarsis with “Tavo Akys”
Israel – Yuval Raphael with “New Day Will Rise”
Armenia – Parg with “Survivor”
Denmark – Sissal with “Hallucination”
Austria – JJ with “Wasted Love”
Luxembourg – Laura Thorn with “La Poupée Monte Le Son”
Finland – Erika Vikman with “I come”
Latvia – Tautumeitas with “Bur Man Laimi”
Malta – Miriana Conte with “Serving”
Greece – Klavdia with “Asteromáta”
Outlook on the ESC final 2025
The grand finale of the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 will take place on Saturday (May 17th) at 9:00 p.m. CEST in the St. Jakobshalle in Basel. It is transferred live to the first, ORF 1, SRF 1 as well as online at Eurovision.de and in the ARD Mediathek. The final show is moderated by Hazel Brugger, Sandra Studer and Michelle Hunziker. The starting order for the final will be drawn after the second semi -final. It is decided in which half of the show the individual countries will appear.
For two years, Montenegro had suspended the ESC for cost reasons. In 2025 the country reported back on the ESC stage. In the case of twelve participation, Montenegro only reached the final twice – most recently in Vienna with Knez in 2015. On January 22, 2025, the Moldovian Rundfunk Teleradio-Moldova (TRM) withdrawn its ESC commitment released last year. According to ESC, the reasons were called economic, administrative and artistic challenges. The same applies to Slovakia. Belarus was excluded by the European Radio Union as a member country in 2021. Participation is not possible until further notice. This has also been valid for Russia since 2022.