Eurovision Song Contest 2023

Eurovision Song Contest 2023 – Participation summaries by country
	Albania; Armenia; Australia; Austria; Azerbaijan; Belgium; Croatia; Cyprus; Czechia; Denmark; Estonia; Finland; France; Georgia; Germany; Greece; Iceland; Ireland; Israel; Italy; Latvia; Lithuania; Malta; Moldova; Netherlands; Norway; Poland; Portugal; Romania; San Marino; Serbia; Slovenia; Spain; Sweden; Switzerland; Ukraine; United Kingdom;

Eurovision Song Contest 2023
Eurovision Song Contest 2023
United by Music
Dates
Semi-final 1	9 May 2023
Semi-final 2	11 May 2023
Final	13 May 2023
Host
Venue	Liverpool Arena; Liverpool, United Kingdom
Presenter(s)	Alesha Dixon; Hannah Waddingham; Julia Sanina; Graham Norton (final);
Directed by	Nikki Parsons; Richard Valentine; Ollie Bartlett;
Executive supervisor	Martin Österdahl
Executive producer	Andrew Cartmell
Host broadcaster	British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
Website	eurovision.tv/event/liverpool-2023
Participants
Number of entries	37
Number of finalists	26
Debuting countries	None
Returning countries	None
Non-returning countries	Bulgaria; Montenegro; North Macedonia;
	Participation map Finalist countries Countries eliminated in the semi-finals Countries that participated in the past but not in 2023;
Vote
Voting system	Each country awards one set in the semi-finals, or two sets in the final of 12, 10, 8–1 points to ten songs.; In all three shows, online votes from viewers in non-participating countries are aggregated and awarded as one set of points.
Winning song	Sweden; "Tattoo"
	2022 ← Eurovision Song Contest → 2024

It took place in Liverpool, United Kingdom, as Ukraine—the winner of the 2022 contest with the song "Stefania" by Kalush Orchestra—was unable to host the event due to the Russian invasion of the country. It was organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), with the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) acting as host broadcaster on behalf of the Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine (UA:PBC). The contest was held at Liverpool Arena, and consisted of two semi-finals on 9 and 11 May and a final on 13 May 2023. The three live shows were presented by British singer Alesha Dixon, British actress Hannah Waddingham, and Ukrainian singer Julia Sanina, with Irish television presenter Graham Norton joining for the final.

Thirty-seven countries participated in the contest, with Bulgaria, Montenegro, and North Macedonia ceasing their participation, mainly due to the economic impact of the global energy crisis.

The winner was Sweden with the song "Tattoo", performed by Loreen and written by her along with Jimmy Thörnfeldt, Jimmy Jansson, Moa Carlebecker, Peter Boström, and Thomas G:son. Finland, Israel, Italy, and Norway rounded out the top five. Sweden won the combined vote and jury vote, and came second to Finland in the televote. Loreen became the second performer to win the contest twice, after Irish singer Johnny Logan; it was also the seventh win for Sweden, tying Ireland's record for the most Eurovision victories.

The EBU reported that the contest had a television audience of 162 million viewers in 38 European markets, an increase of a million viewers from the previous edition. A total of 15.6 million viewers watched the contest online on YouTube and TikTok.

Location

Location of host venue (red) and other contest-related sites and events (blue)

The 2023 contest was held in Liverpool, United Kingdom. It was the ninth time that the United Kingdom had hosted the contest, having previously done so for winning the previous year in 1968, 1977, 1982, and 1998, and in place of the previous year's winning country in 1960, 1963, 1972, and 1974. The selected venue was the 11,000-seat Liverpool Arena, a multi-purpose indoor arena located in the ACC Liverpool complex. The "Turquoise Carpet" event, where the contestants and their delegations were presented before accredited press and fans, took place outside the Walker Art Gallery on 7 May 2023, followed by the Opening Ceremony at St George's Hall.

In conjunction with the contest, Liverpool held a cultural festival called "EuroFest", which featured collaborations between British and Ukrainian artists. The Pier Head was the location of the Eurovision Village, where a stage hosted performances by Ukrainian artists, local artists, current and previous Eurovision entrants, and other groups. It also held screenings of the three live shows. Entry to the Village was free of charge except during the final. The EuroClub, which took place at Camp and Furnace, hosted the official after-parties and private performances by contest participants.

Host country selection

The 2022 contest was won by Ukraine with the song "Stefania" by Kalush Orchestra, which, according to Eurovision tradition, made Ukraine the presumptive host of the 2023 contest. The country had hosted the contest twice before, in 2005 and 2017, both times in Kyiv. Between May and June 2022, the Ukrainian government and UA:PBC, the nation's public broadcaster, discussed hosting the contest with the EBU. The chairman of UA:PBC, Mykola Chernotytskyi [uk], Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and other Ukrainian politicians expressed their willingness to host the event, and an organising committee was formed.

Despite this, the EBU announced on 17 June 2022 that the Russian invasion of Ukraine meant that UA:PBC could not give the security and operations guarantees required to host the contest, and that the event could therefore not be held in Ukraine. The EBU then entered discussions with the BBC, the 2022 runner-up, and on 25 July announced that the 2023 contest would be hosted in the United Kingdom. It was the first time since 1980 that the contest was not hosted by the previous year's winning country.

The decision not to host in Ukraine was initially met with disappointment. UA:PBC published a statement in which Chernotytskyi requested further talks with the EBU, and Oleh Psiuk of Kalush Orchestra published an open letter criticising the decision, co-signed by Ukraine's previous Eurovision winners, Ruslana and Jamala, as well as Ukraine's minister of culture Oleksandr Tkachenko. This stance was supported by Boris Johnson, who was the British prime minister at the time, Nadine Dorries, who was the British culture secretary at the time, the Polish broadcaster Telewizja Polska, and Poland's deputy prime minister and minister of culture Piotr Gliński. The announcement on 25 July that the BBC would host the contest was supported by UA:PBC.

Host city bidding phase

Liverpool

Location of host city Liverpool (in blue), shortlisted city Glasgow (in yellow), longlisted cities (in green), other bidding cities (in red) and cities and towns that expressed interest but ultimately did not bid (in grey)

The host city bidding process ran from 25 July to 7 October 2022, with candidates judged against a set of criteria to demonstrate that they could host an event on the scale of the Eurovision Song Contest. During the first stage of the process, the BBC received expressions of interest from 20 UK cities and towns, seven of which were longlisted on 12 August 2022: Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, and Sheffield. These cities had until 8 September to develop their bids in detail for evaluation by the BBC, which also conducted visits to the cities throughout the month. On 27 September, Glasgow and Liverpool were announced to have made the shortlist, and on 7 October, the EBU and the BBC announced Liverpool as the host city.

Key:
† Host city ‡ Shortlisted * Longlisted ^ Submitted a bid


City/town	Venue	Notes
Aberdeen ^	The Event Complex Aberdeen	—
Belfast ^	Odyssey Arena	—
Birmingham *	Birmingham International Arena	Supported by Birmingham City Council
Brighton	—	Withdrew its proposal on 11 August 2022, citing lack of required infrastructure and venue
Bristol ^	Bristol Arena	—
Cardiff	Millennium Stadium	Withdrew its proposal on 3 August 2022, citing unavailability of the proposed venue
Darlington ^	The Darlington Arena	Proposal was dependent on the construction of a roof to cover the arena; supported by Darlington Borough Council and Tees Valley Combined Authority
Derry	—	Withdrew its proposal on 8 August 2022, citing lack of a suitable venue and supporting accommodation infrastructure
Edinburgh ^	—	Supported by Edinburgh City Council
Glasgow ‡	The Hydro	Supported by Glasgow City Council
Leeds *	Leeds Arena	Supported by Leeds City Council
Liverpool †	Liverpool Arena	Supported by Liverpool City Council
London ^	—	London met the criteria but was not shortlisted, as the BBC and the British government aimed to "move events and opportunities outside the capital".
Manchester *	Manchester Arena	Supported by Manchester City Council
Newcastle *	Newcastle Arena	Supported by Newcastle City Council
Nottingham	Nottingham Arena	Withdrew its proposal on 9 August 2022, citing the proposed venue's incapability to meet EBU requirements
Sheffield *	Sheffield Arena	Supported by Sheffield City Council and South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority
Sunderland	Stadium of Light	Withdrew its proposal on 10 August 2022, citing unavailability of the proposed venue
Wolverhampton	—	—

Participating countries

Eligibility for potential participation in the Eurovision Song Contest requires a national broadcaster with active EBU membership capable of receiving the contest via the Eurovision network and broadcasting it live nationwide. The EBU issued an invitation to participate in the contest to all active members. Associate member Australia did not need an invitation for the 2023 contest, as it had previously been granted permission to participate until at least this year.

On 20 October 2022, the EBU announced that 37 countries would participate in the 2023 contest – the lowest number of participating countries in a single edition since 2014 – with Bulgaria, Montenegro and North Macedonia, which had participated in the 2022 contest, opting not to participate in 2023 for financial reasons. This was also the first contest where the Czech Republic participated under its shortened English name of Czechia.

Participants of the Eurovision Song Contest 2023
Country	Broadcaster	Artist	Song	Language	Songwriter(s)
Albania	RTSH	Albina and Familja Kelmendi	"Duje"	Albanian	Enis Mullaj Eriona Rushiti
Armenia	AMPTV	Brunette	"Future Lover"	English, Armenian	Elen Yeremyan
Australia	SBS	Voyager	"Promise"	English	Alex Canion Ashley Doodkorte Simone Dow Daniel Estrin Scott Kay
Austria	ORF	Teya and Salena	"Who the Hell Is Edgar?"	English	Selina-Maria Edbauer Ronald Janeček Pele Loriano Teodora Špirić
Azerbaijan	İTV	TuralTuranX	"Tell Me More"	English	Nihad Aliyev Tural Baghmanov Turan Baghmanov Tunar Taghiyev
Belgium	VRT	Gustaph	"Because of You"	English	Jaouad Alloul Stef Caers
Croatia	HRT	Let 3	"Mama ŠČ!"	Croatian	Damir Martinović Mrle Zoran Prodanović
Cyprus	CyBC	Andrew Lambrou	"Break a Broken Heart"	English	Jimmy Jansson Thomas Stengaard Jimmy "Joker" Thörnfeldt Marcus Winther-John
Czechia	ČT	Vesna	"My Sister's Crown"	English, Czech, Ukrainian, Bulgarian	Adam Albrecht Michal Jiráň Patricie Kaňok Šimon Martínek Kateryna Vatchenko Tanita Yankova
Denmark	DR	Reiley	"Breaking My Heart"	English	Bård Bonsaksen Sivert Hjeltnes Hagtvet Rani Petersen Hilda Stenmalm
Estonia	ERR	Alika	"Bridges"	English	Alika Milova Wouter Hardy Nina Sampermans
Finland	Yle	Käärijä	"Cha Cha Cha"	Finnish	Johannes Naukkarinen Aleksi Nurmi Jere Pöyhönen
France	France Télévisions	La Zarra	"Évidemment"	French	Fatima-Zahra Hafdi Yannick Rastogi Zacharie Raymond Ahmed Saghir
Georgia	GPB	Iru	"Echo"	English	Beni Kadagidze Iru Khechanovi Giorgi Kukhianidze
Germany	NDR	Lord of the Lost	"Blood & Glitter"	English	Anthony J. Brown Chris Harms Rupert Keplinger Pi Stoffers
Greece	ERT	Victor Vernicos	"What They Say"	English	Victor Vernicos Jørgensen
Iceland	RÚV	Diljá	"Power"	English	Diljá Pétursdóttir Pálmi Ragnar Ásgeirsson
Ireland	RTÉ	Wild Youth	"We Are One"	English	Jörgen Elofsson Conor O'Donohoe Edward Porter
Israel	IPBC	Noa Kirel	"Unicorn"	English	Noa Kirel Doron Medalie May Sfadia Yinon Yahel
Italy	RAI	Marco Mengoni	"Due vite"	Italian	Marco Mengoni Davide Petrella Davide Simonetta
Latvia	LTV	Sudden Lights	"Aijā"	English	Kārlis Matīss Zitmanis Mārtiņš Matīss Zemītis Andrejs Reinis Zitmanis Kārlis Vārtiņš
Lithuania	LRT	Monika Linkytė	"Stay"	English	Krists Indrišonoks Monika Linkytė
Malta	PBS	The Busker	"Dance (Our Own Party)"	English	Matthew James Borg Jean Paul Borg Micheal Joe Cini Sean Meachen David Meilak
Moldova	TRM	Pasha Parfeni	"Soarele și luna"	Romanian	Pasha Parfeni Yuliana Parfeni Cătălin Temciuc Andrei Vulpe
Netherlands	AVROTROS	Mia Nicolai and Dion Cooper	"Burning Daylight"	English	Dion Cuiper Jordan Garfield Loek van der Grinten Duncan de Moor Mia Nicolai
Norway	NRK	Alessandra	"Queen of Kings"	English	Linda Dale Stanley Ferdinandez Alessandra Mele Henning Olerud
Poland	TVP	Blanka	"Solo"	English	Maria Broberg Marcin Górecki Maciej Puchalski Bartłomiej Rzeczycki Blanka Stajkow Julia Sundberg Mikołaj Trybulec
Portugal	RTP	Mimicat	"Ai coração"	Portuguese	Marisa Mena Luís Pereira
Romania	TVR	Theodor Andrei	"D.G.T. (Off and On)"	Romanian, English	Theodor-Octavian Andrei Luca De Mezzo Mikail Jahed Luca Ştefan Udăţeanu
San Marino	SMRTV	Piqued Jacks	"Like an Animal"	English	Francesco Bini Andrea Lazzeretti Tommaso Oliveri Marco Sgaramella
Serbia	RTS	Luke Black	"Samo mi se spava" (Само ми се спава)	Serbian, English	Luka Ivanović
Slovenia	RTVSLO	Joker Out	"Carpe Diem"	Slovene	Bojan Cvjetićanin Kris Guštin Nace Jordan Jure Maček Jan Peteh
Spain	RTVE	Blanca Paloma	"Eaea"	Spanish	Blanca Paloma Ramos Baeza José Pablo Polo Álvaro Tato
Sweden	SVT	Loreen	"Tattoo"	English	Peter Boström Moa Carlebecker Thomas Gustafsson Jimmy Jansson Lorine Talhaoui Jimmy "Joker" Thörnfeldt
Switzerland	SRG SSR	Remo Forrer	"Watergun"	English	Ashley Hicklin Argyle Singh Mikołaj Trybulec
Ukraine	UA:PBC	Tvorchi	"Heart of Steel"	English, Ukrainian	Andrii Hutsuliak Jimoh Augustus Kehinde
United Kingdom	BBC	Mae Muller	"I Wrote a Song"	English	Mae Muller Karen Poole Lewis Thompson

Returning artists

The contest featured four representatives who also previously performed as lead vocalists for the same country. Two of them had competed in 2012: Loreen won that year's contest representing Sweden, while Pasha Parfeni represented Moldova that year and later provided backing vocals for Aliona Moon in 2013. Also returning as lead artists were Marco Mengoni, who had represented Italy in 2013, and Monika Linkytė, who had represented Lithuania in 2015 alongside Vaidas Baumila. In addition, Belgium's Gustaph had previously provided backing vocals for Sennek in 2018 and Hooverphonic in 2021, and Georgia's Iru had won the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2011 as a member of Candy.

Other countries

Several EBU member broadcasters made statements confirming non-participation prior to the publication of the official 2023 participants list. The management board of Bulgarian broadcaster BNT, at a meeting on 7 September 2022, decided not to participate in the 2023 contest, citing an expected increase in participation fees; this was later publicly confirmed in several Bulgarian news outlets on 19 October. The Montenegrin broadcaster RTCG and the Macedonian broadcaster MRT also publicly confirmed on 13 and 14 October 2022 respectively that they would not participate in the contest, citing financial contraints. Both RTCG and MRT however confirmed their intentions to broadcast the 2023 contest. Active EBU member broadcasters in Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Luxembourg and Slovakia also confirmed non-participation prior to the announcement of the participants list by the EBU.

A potential return for Monaco to the contest in 2023 – in what would have been its first participation since 2006 – was first discussed in November 2021, when it was reported that part of the Monégasque state budget had been reserved for participation in the 2023 contest. However, these plans were curtailed due to the delay in the launch of a new Monégasque public television channel, TVMonaco, which commenced broadcasts in September 2023 instead of the initially outlined period of late 2022. Monaco Media Diffusion, the current EBU member broadcaster for Monaco, subsequently confirmed on 5 September 2022 that the country would not participate in the 2023 event.

Discussions were also reported between the EBU and Kazakh broadcaster Khabar Agency, an associate member of the EBU, which would have led to Kazakhstan being invited to participate in the contest for the first time. Kazakhstan has participated in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest since 2018, with television producer Zhan Mukanov stating that "there is every chance [for Kazakhstan] to enter the adult Eurovision next year" and that the country's participation in the 2022 Junior contest would have a "significant impact" on its chances of debuting in the adult event. The country, however, did not appear on the final list of participants.

Production

The Eurovision Song Contest 2023 was produced by the British national broadcaster British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). The Ukrainian public broadcaster UA:PBC worked with the BBC to develop and implement Ukrainian elements for the live shows, including theme artwork, background music, selection of presenters, and opening and interval acts. The three shows were produced by BBC Studios Entertainment Productions and BBC Studios Music Productions, part of the BBC's commercial subsidiary BBC Studios.

The senior production team consisted of Martin Green as managing director, Rachel Ashdown as lead commissioner, Andrew Cartmell as executive producer, Lee Smithurst as head of show, Twan van de Nieuwenhuijzen as head of contest, and James O'Brien as executive in charge of production. Additional production personnel included multi-camera directors Nikki Parsons, Richard Valentine and Ollie Bartlett, lead creative director Dan Shipton, music director Kojo Samuel, stage designer Julio Himede, head of sound Robert Edwards, and lighting designer Tim Routledge. The Ukrainian consultation team was led by Oksana Skybinska, Tetiana Semenova, and Herman Nenov [ru]. Background music for the shows was composed by Mykhailo Nekrasov.

The budget was contributed to by Liverpool City Council and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (£2 million each), the British government (£10 million), and the BBC (£8 million to £17 million). The overall budget was not made public, but was estimated to be at around £24.7 million (€28.3 million), including expenditures by the host city.

Visual design

On 7 October 2022, along with the host city announcement, the EBU revealed the generic logo for the 2023 contest. The Eurovision heart, which typically has the flag of the host country placed in its centre, contained the Ukrainian flag for this year to reflect the country's win the previous year. The 'Song Contest' text was accompanied below by 'United Kingdom' and further down by 'Liverpool 2023'.

The theme art and slogan for the contest, "United by Music", was unveiled on 31 January 2023. Designed by London-based brand consultancy Superunion and Ukrainian production company Starlight Media, the artwork was built around a string of two-dimensional hearts resembling an electrocardiogram, representing response to rhythm and sound, while the colours were inspired by those of the Ukrainian and British flags. The typeface, Penny Lane, was inspired by 20th-century Liverpool street signs and the city's musical heritage.

Stage design

The stage design for the 2023 contest was revealed on 2 February 2023. Designed by New York-based set designer Julio Himede, the design was based on "the principles of togetherness, celebration and community", taking inspiration from a wide hug and the "cultural aspects and similarities between Ukraine, the UK and specifically Liverpool". The stage is 450 square metres, with 220 square metres of independently rotating LED screens, over 700 LED floor tiles and more than 1500 metres of LED lights. King Charles III and Queen Camilla (whose coronations were held the week before the contest) inaugurated the stage on 26 April, during an official visit to Liverpool.

Postcards

The "postcards" were 40-second video introductions shown on television whilst the stage is being prepared for the next entry. Filmed between February and April 2023 and directed by Tom Cook, with Carlo Massarella and Jane McGoldrick serving as executive producers, the postcards were based on the "United by Music" theme of the contest. Making use of 360° drone technology, each postcard began in a selected location in Ukraine, then one in the United Kingdom, before moving to the artist's country of origin, where the artist took part in an activity of their choice. The three locations appearing in each postcard were connected by a singular theme. Each postcard was bookended with the "little planet effect", which symbolised the interconnections between people. The postcards were produced by London-based production company Windfall Films and Ukrainian production company 23/32, with background music composed by Dmytro Shurov. The following locations were used for each participating country:

Postcard locations
Country	Theme	Locations
Country	Theme	In Ukraine	In the United Kingdom	In the participating country
Albania	City parks	Sofiyivka Park, Uman	Sefton Park, Liverpool	Grand Park of Tirana
Armenia	Botanical gardens	Botanical garden, Lviv University	Eden Project, Cornwall	Yerevan Botanical Garden
Australia	Bridges	Glass Bridge, Kyiv	Clifton Suspension Bridge, Bristol	Matagarup Bridge, Perth
Austria	City halls	Lviv Town Hall	Sheffield Town Hall	Vienna City Hall
Azerbaijan	City squares	Maidan Nezalezhnosti, Kyiv	Centenary Square, Birmingham	Baku Boulevard
Belgium	Monuments	Independence Monument, Kyiv	Angel of the North, Gateshead	Atomium, Brussels
Croatia	Ports	Kyiv River Port	Whitby Harbour, North Yorkshire	Port of Rijeka
Cyprus	Beaches	Kyiv Sea beach	Brighton Beach, East Sussex	Akti Olympion Beach, Limassol
Czechia	Mazes	Green Maze, Zhytomyr	Peace Maze, Castlewellan	Yew Maze, Loučeň Castle
Denmark	Opera houses	Lviv Theatre of Opera and Ballet	Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff	Copenhagen Opera House
Estonia	Towers	Vinnytsia water tower	Blackpool Tower, Lancashire	Tallinn TV Tower
Finland	Ferris wheels	Podil ferris wheel, Kyiv	Wheel of Liverpool	SkyWheel Helsinki
France	Palaces	Potocki Palace, Lviv	Hopetoun House, West Lothian	Palace of Fontainebleau, Seine-et-Marne
Georgia	Old towns	Old Town, Lviv	Port Sunlight, Merseyside	Old Town, Tbilisi
Germany	Canals	Rusanivka, Kyiv	Bridgewater Canal, Greater Manchester	Kehrwiederfleet Canal, Hamburg
Greece	Ruins	Tarakaniv Fort, Rivne Oblast region	Dunluce Castle, County Antrim	Temple of Poseidon, Sounion
Iceland	Waterfalls	Maniava waterfall, Gorgany	Pistyll Rhaeadr, Powys	Kvernufoss [it], Skógar region
Ireland	Mountain roads	Mountain road in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast region	Military Road, Isle of Wight	Sally Gap, County Wicklow
Israel	Rock formations	Urytski rocks in the Skole Beskids mountain range	Stonehenge, Wiltshire	Masada, Judaean Desert
Italy	Velodromes	Kyiv Velodrome	Pump Track Wales, Rhayader	Circus Maximus, Rome
Latvia	Beach campsites	Ecospace pods, Kyiv Sea	Beach huts at Boscombe beach, Bournemouth	Melnsils, Talsi Municipality
Lithuania	Fortresses	Khotyn Fortress, Chernivtsi Oblast	Eilean Donan, Scottish Highlands	Trakai Island Castle
Malta	Buses	Lviv autobus	London red double-decker bus	Vintage bus in Mellieħa
Moldova	Forests	Skole Beskids Forest, Lviv	Sherwood Forest, Nottinghamshire	Orhei National Park, Trebujeni
Netherlands	Colourful architecture	Comfort Town, Kyiv	Portmeirion, Gwynedd	Zaandam, North Holland
Norway	Libraries	Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine	Liverpool Central Library	Oslo Public Library
Poland	Universities	Chernivtsi University	Trinity College, Cambridge	Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw
Portugal	Churches	St Sophia Cathedral, Kyiv	Ely Cathedral, Cambridgeshire	Church of Santa Engrácia, Lisbon
Romania	Statues	Taras Shevchenko statue, Lviv	The Beatles statue, Liverpool	A Carriage with Clowns sculpture, Bucharest
San Marino	Castles	Kamianets-Podilskyi Castle, Khmelnytskyi Oblast	Herstmonceux Castle, East Sussex	Guaita, Monte Titano
Serbia	Art galleries	Park3020, Lviv region	Tate Liverpool	Museum of Contemporary Art, Belgrade
Slovenia	Rooftops	Tetris Hall rooftop, Kyiv	Goodness Gracious Roof Bar, Liverpool	Radio Slovenija rooftop, Ljubljana
Spain	Theatres	Amphitheater, Uzhhorod	Minack Theatre, Cornwall	Roman Theatre, Sagunto
Sweden	Islands	Anti-Circe Island, Uman	St Catherine's Island, Tenby	Enholmen [sv], Gotland
Switzerland	Lakes	Lake Buchak, Cherkasy Oblast	Loch Ness, Scottish Highlands	Lake Zurich
Ukraine	Street murals	Street murals in Kyiv	Street murals in Belfast	Art-Zavod Platforma, Kyiv
United Kingdom	Rivers	Dnieper, Kyiv	River Mersey, Liverpool	River Thames, London

Vocal rules

For the third year in a row, delegations had the option to use pre-recorded backing vocals, though each delegation could still use live backing singers—whether on or off stage—or a combination of live and recorded backing vocals. However, all lead vocals and lead dubs performing the melody of the song must still be live. The contest's executive supervisor Martin Österdahl later stated that the use of pre-recorded backing vocals would continue to be permitted for the foreseeable future.

Presenters

British singer Alesha Dixon, British actress Hannah Waddingham, and Ukrainian singer Julia Sanina were announced as the presenters for the 2023 contest on 22 February 2023, and they hosted all three shows of the event; Irish television presenter Graham Norton joined them for the final. Norton has served as the BBC's commentator for the contest since 2009, and had previously co-hosted both editions of the Eurovision Dance Contest in 2007 and 2008, as well as Eurovision Song Contest's Greatest Hits in 2015.

The "Turquoise Carpet" and Opening Ceremony events were hosted by Timur Miroshnychenko (who had co-hosted the 2017 contest) and Sam Quek, with Richie Anderson providing off-screen commentary. Miroshnychenko also moderated the contest's press conferences, along with Jermaine Foster and Mariia Vynogradova.

Format

Voting system and contest structure

On 22 November 2022, the EBU announced changes to the voting system for the 2023 contest. The results of the semi-finals would be determined solely by televoting, as was the case between 2004 and 2007, while the results of the final would be determined by a combination of national juries and televoting, as has been the case since the 2009 final. In the event that a country cannot deliver a televoting result in a semi-final, a backup jury result would be used instead. In the final, in the event that a country cannot deliver a televoting result, an aggregated result calculated on the basis of countries with similar voting patterns would be used. If a country's jury is disqualified, the televoting points from that country would be doubled and used as a substitute for that country's jury points in the final. The procedure of using calculated points would remain as a last resort in the event that a country cannot deliver a valid jury or televoting result. Viewers from non-participating countries would also be able to vote in all shows, with their votes being aggregated and presented as one individual set of points under "Rest of the World". Those viewers would be able to cast votes via an online platform, which requires ownership of a credit or debit card for verification.

On 8 May 2023, a change to the semi-final qualifiers announcement format was revealed, where the acts would be on stage to anticipate the announcement of the finalists instead of sitting in the green room, similar to The X Factor. This format was trialled during a dress rehearsal for the first semi-final, before being dropped on the same day due to negative responses.

Semi-final allocation draw

The draw to determine the participating countries' semi-finals took place on 31 January 2023 at 19:00 GMT (20:00 CET), at St George's Hall. The thirty-one semi-finalists were divided over five pots, based on historical voting patterns as calculated by the contest's official televoting partner Digame. The purpose of drawing from different pots was to reduce the chance of "bloc voting" and to increase suspense in the semi-finals. The draw also determined which semi-final each of the six automatic qualifiers – the previous year's winning country Ukraine and "Big Five" countries France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom – would broadcast and vote in. The ceremony was hosted by AJ Odudu and Rylan, and included the passing of the host city insignia from Stefano Lo Russo, the mayor of previous host city Turin, to Joanne Anderson, the mayor of Liverpool. London-based production company ModestTV was commissioned to produce the broadcast of the ceremony.

Pot 1	Pot 2	Pot 3	Pot 4	Pot 5
Albania Austria Croatia Serbia Slovenia Switzerland	Australia Denmark Estonia Finland Iceland Norway Sweden	Armenia Azerbaijan Georgia Israel Latvia Lithuania	Cyprus Greece Ireland Malta Portugal San Marino	Belgium Czechia Moldova Netherlands Poland Romania

Contest overview

Semi-final 1

The first semi-final took place on 9 May 2023 at 20:00 BST (21:00 CEST). Fifteen countries participated in this semi-final, with the running order published on 22 March 2023. Finland won the most points, followed by Sweden, Israel, Czechia, Moldova, Norway, Switzerland, Croatia, Portugal, and Serbia. The countries that failed to reach the final were Latvia, Ireland, the Netherlands, Azerbaijan, and Malta. All the countries competing in this semi-final were eligible to vote, plus France, Germany and Italy, as well as non-participating countries under an aggregated "Rest of the World" vote.

This semi-final was opened by a dance sketch set to "Together in Electric Dreams", preceded by a pre-recorded segment featuring Paul Hollywood, King Charles III, Queen Camilla, Sister Sister, Ricky Tomlinson, and Paul O'Grady in a posthumous appearance. This was followed by co-presenter Julia Sanina performing "Mayak" with her husband and fellow The Hardkiss member Valeriy Bebko. The interval acts included Alyosha performing "Ordinary World" with Rebecca Ferguson, and Rita Ora performing a medley of "Ritual", "Anywhere", "I Will Never Let You Down" and "Praising You". The French, German, and Italian artists were then interviewed, and clips of their competing songs were played.

Qualifiers

Results of the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2023
R/O	Country	Artist	Song	Points	Place
1	Norway	Alessandra	"Queen of Kings"	102	6
2	Malta	The Busker	"Dance (Our Own Party)"	3	15
3	Serbia	Luke Black	"Samo mi se spava"	37	10
4	Latvia	Sudden Lights	"Aijā"	34	11
5	Portugal	Mimicat	"Ai coração"	74	9
6	Ireland	Wild Youth	"We Are One"	10	12
7	Croatia	Let 3	"Mama ŠČ!"	76	8
8	Switzerland	Remo Forrer	"Watergun"	97	7
9	Israel	Noa Kirel	"Unicorn"	127	3
10	Moldova	Pasha Parfeni	"Soarele și luna"	109	5
11	Sweden	Loreen	"Tattoo"	135	2
12	Azerbaijan	TuralTuranX	"Tell Me More"	4	14
13	Czechia	Vesna	"My Sister's Crown"	110	4
14	Netherlands	Mia Nicolai and Dion Cooper	"Burning Daylight"	7	13
15	Finland	Käärijä	"Cha Cha Cha"	177	1

Semi-final 2

The second semi-final took place on 11 May 2023 at 20:00 BST (21:00 CEST). Sixteen countries participated in this semi-final, with the running order published on 22 March 2023. Australia won the most points, followed by Austria, Poland, Lithuania, Slovenia, Armenia, Cyprus, Belgium, Albania, and Estonia. The countries that failed to reach the final were Iceland, Georgia, Greece, Denmark, Romania, and San Marino. All the countries competing in this semi-final were eligible to vote, plus Spain, Ukraine and the United Kingdom, as well as non-participating countries under an aggregated "Rest of the World" vote.

This semi-final featured a pre-recorded spoken word piece on the history of the contest by actor Luke Evans during a break between the competing performances, while the interval acts included "Music Unites Generations", a medley of well-known Ukrainian musical works performed by Mariya Yaremchuk, Otoy and Zlata Dziunka, and a dance sketch choreographed by Jason Gilkison and performed by three drag performers, Miss Demeanour, Miss Mercedes Bends, and Tomara Thomas, along with the Podilya dance ensemble. The sketch, titled "Be Who You Wanna Be", was set to a medley of "Free Yourself", "Free Your Mind", "Free" and the 2018 Australian entry "We Got Love". The British, Spanish and Ukrainian artists were then interviewed, and clips of their competing songs were played.

Qualifiers

Results of the second semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2023
R/O	Country	Artist	Song	Points	Place
1	Denmark	Reiley	"Breaking My Heart"	6	14
2	Armenia	Brunette	"Future Lover"	99	6
3	Romania	Theodor Andrei	"D.G.T. (Off and On)"	0	15
4	Estonia	Alika	"Bridges"	74	10
5	Belgium	Gustaph	"Because of You"	90	8
6	Cyprus	Andrew Lambrou	"Break a Broken Heart"	94	7
7	Iceland	Diljá	"Power"	44	11
8	Greece	Victor Vernicos	"What They Say"	14	13
9	Poland	Blanka	"Solo"	124	3
10	Slovenia	Joker Out	"Carpe Diem"	103	5
11	Georgia	Iru	"Echo"	33	12
12	San Marino	Piqued Jacks	"Like an Animal"	0	16
13	Austria	Teya and Salena	"Who the Hell Is Edgar?"	137	2
14	Albania	Albina and Familja Kelmendi	"Duje"	83	9
15	Lithuania	Monika Linkytė	"Stay"	110	4
16	Australia	Voyager	"Promise"	149	1

Final

The final took place on 13 May 2023 at 20:00 BST (21:00 CEST). Twenty-six countries participated in the final, with the jury and televote of all thirty-seven participating countries, as well as non-participating countries under an aggregated "Rest of the World" online vote, eligible to vote. The running order for the final was published on 12 May 2023. Sweden won the contest with the song "Tattoo", performed by Loreen and written by her along with Jimmy Jansson, Jimmy "Joker" Thörnfeldt, Moa "Cazzi Opeia" Carlebecker, Peter Boström, and Thomas G:son. Sweden won with 583 points, also winning the jury vote. Finland came second with 526 points and won the televote, with Israel, Italy, Norway, Ukraine, Belgium, Estonia, Australia and Czechia completing the top ten. Albania, Portugal, Serbia, the United Kingdom, and Germany occupied the bottom five positions.

The final was opened by Kalush Orchestra performing their winning song "Stefania" and their latest single "Changes". Among those who appeared in the pre-recorded portion of the opening were Bolt Strings, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Joss Stone, Ballet Black, Ms Banks, and Catherine, Princess of Wales. This was followed by the flag parade, introducing all twenty-six finalists, accompanied by four former Ukrainian Eurovision entrants performing new spins on their competing songs mixed with British classics: Go_A with "Shum", Jamala with her winning song "1944", Tina Karol with "Show Me Your Love", and Verka Serduchka with "Dancing Lasha Tumbai". The interval acts included Sam Ryder performing his new single "Mountain" with Queen's Roger Taylor, and "The Liverpool Songbook", a homage to Liverpool's music heritage featuring six former Eurovision entrants singing their own version of songs from the host city: Mahmood with "Imagine", Netta with "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)", Daði Freyr with "Whole Again", Cornelia Jakobs with "I Turn to You", Sonia with "Better the Devil You Know", and Duncan Laurence, together with the aforementioned artists, the presenters, and Ruslana in a pre-recorded appearance at the Golden Gate in Kyiv, with "You'll Never Walk Alone". ABBA's Björn Ulvaeus also appeared in a short video skit on the recent commercial successes to come out of the contest.

Winner

Results of the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2023
R/O	Country	Artist	Song	Points	Place
1	Austria	Teya and Salena	"Who the Hell Is Edgar?"	120	15
2	Portugal	Mimicat	"Ai coração"	59	23
3	Switzerland	Remo Forrer	"Watergun"	92	20
4	Poland	Blanka	"Solo"	93	19
5	Serbia	Luke Black	"Samo mi se spava"	30	24
6	France	La Zarra	"Évidemment"	104	16
7	Cyprus	Andrew Lambrou	"Break a Broken Heart"	126	12
8	Spain	Blanca Paloma	"Eaea"	100	17
9	Sweden	Loreen	"Tattoo"	583	1
10	Albania	Albina and Familja Kelmendi	"Duje"	76	22
11	Italy	Marco Mengoni	"Due vite"	350	4
12	Estonia	Alika	"Bridges"	168	8
13	Finland	Käärijä	"Cha Cha Cha"	526	2
14	Czechia	Vesna	"My Sister's Crown"	129	10
15	Australia	Voyager	"Promise"	151	9
16	Belgium	Gustaph	"Because of You"	182	7
17	Armenia	Brunette	"Future Lover"	122	14
18	Moldova	Pasha Parfeni	"Soarele și luna"	96	18
19	Ukraine	Tvorchi	"Heart of Steel"	243	6
20	Norway	Alessandra	"Queen of Kings"	268	5
21	Germany	Lord of the Lost	"Blood & Glitter"	18	26
22	Lithuania	Monika Linkytė	"Stay"	127	11
23	Israel	Noa Kirel	"Unicorn"	362	3
24	Slovenia	Joker Out	"Carpe Diem"	78	21
25	Croatia	Let 3	"Mama ŠČ!"	123	13
26	United Kingdom	Mae Muller	"I Wrote a Song"	24	25

Spokespersons

The spokespersons announced the 12-point score from their respective country's national jury in the following order. Unlike in the editions from 2016 to 2022, in which the previous host country announced its points first, Ukraine was the first country to announce its jury points, followed by the previous host country, Italy. The current host country, the United Kingdom, announced its points last as usual.

Ukraine – Zlata Ognevich
Italy – Kaze
Latvia – Jānis Pētersons
Netherlands – S10
Malta – Ryan Hili
Moldova – Doina Stimpovschi
Ireland – Niamh Kavanagh
San Marino – John Kennedy O'Connor
Azerbaijan – Narmin Salmanova
Austria – Philipp Hansa
France – Anggun
Finland – Bess
Belgium – Bart Cannaerts [nl]
Germany – Elton
Portugal – Maro
Croatia – Maja Ciglenečki
Estonia – Ragnar Klavan
Armenia – Maléna
Poland – Ida Nowakowska
Romania – Eda Marcus
Iceland – Einar Stefánsson
Serbia – Dragana Kosjerina
Cyprus – Loukas Hamatsos
Norway – Ben Adams
Switzerland – Chiara Dubey
Australia – Catherine Martin
Denmark – Tina Müller
Spain – Ruth Lorenzo
Israel – Ilanit
Sweden – Farah Abadi
Georgia – Archil Sulakvelidze
Czechia – Radka Rosická [cs]
Slovenia – Melani Mekicar
Greece – Fotis Sergoulopoulos [el]
Albania – Andri Xhahu
Lithuania – Monika Liu
United Kingdom – Catherine Tate