The world’s most famous song contest is fast approaching. You may know it as the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest, but others refer to it as Eurovision or Eurovision 2025. This year’s event is shaping up to be one of the most closely fought contests.
This guide covers important things like where and when the main event is, which nations are competing this year, and who the odds-on favorites are to win based on the latest odds currently offered by today’s most trusted bookmakers.
Where is the 2025 Eurovision final?
The 2025 Eurovision Song Contest final is scheduled for May 17 at St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland. However, before we can watch the final, there are two semi-finals, the first on May 13 and the second two days later, on May 15.
This year’s event will be the competition’s 69th edition. It’s taking place in Switzerland this year because the country won Eurovision 2024 with their song entitled ‘The Code’ by a band called Nemo.
The two semi-finals and the final will all be televised live on local television channels in 37 countries,
which matches the number of entries.
Is it possible to place a wager on Eurovision 2025, and who are the odds-on favorites to win?
Many viewers will bet on Eurovision 2025. They use a handful of fully licensed and regulated online sports betting sites. For many of today’s most trusted online bookmakers, Eurovision betting is classified as a novelty bet, special bet, or television bet.
To wager on this event on most legally permitted sites, you must be at least 18 years old. Let’s take a quick look at four of the most promising acts that are currently favored to win.
Revealed here are the three different odds formats (fractional, decimal, and American/moneyline), the implied probability rates, the name of the band/artists, and the name of the song they will be performing:
- Bet type: Eurovision 2025 outright winner. Country: Sweden. Song: Bara Bada Bastu. Artist: KAJ. Odds of winning: 1/7 (fractional), 1.14 (decimal), -700 (American/moneyline). Implied probability rate (IPR): 87.50% – ODDS-ON FAVORITE TO WIN
- Bet type: Eurovision 2025 outright winner. Country: Estonia. Song: Espresso Macchiato. Artist: Tommy Cash. Odds of winning: 7/1, 8.00, +700. IPR: 12.50% – Second odds-on favorite to win
- Bet type: Eurovision 2025 outright winner. Country: Netherlands. Song: C’est la Vie. Artist: Claude. Odds of winning: 9/1, 10.00, +900. IPR: 10.00% – third odds-on favorite to win
- Bet type: Eurovision 2025 outright winner. Country: Ukraine. Song: Bird of Pray. Artist: Ziferblat. Odds of winning: 16/1, 17.00, +1600. IPR: 5.90% – third odds-on favurite to win
These are the average odds taken from several trusted online sportsbooks. While they are accurate at the time of writing, they can fluctuate somewhat between now and the finals.
It is important to remember that betting on the Eurovision Song Contest isn’t an exact science. In other words, betting on the odds-on favorite, which in this case is Sweden with their song Bara Bada Bastu from artist KAJ, doesn’t mean that you are guaranteed a return on your initial wager.
Anything can happen in competitions like this to upset the odds. So, if you decide to wager on this year’s Eurovision Song Contest, only bet with money you can comfortably afford to lose.
Some of the other countries that many professional bettors also claim might be good ‘value bets’ are Albania, Belgium, Cyprus, Norway, and Poland.
How does the voting work?
Each participant (country) is awarded one set in the semi-finals or two sets in the final. They can award 1-8 points, 10 points, or 12 points. The public can also vote online or by calling into the television show broadcasting the live event in their home country.
Which country is the most successful in the history of the Eurovision Song Contest?
Everyone’s favorite countries at the Eurovision Song Contest have been Sweden and the Republic of Ireland since its beginning in 1956. They have been voted the winners more than any other nation, each picking up the winner’s trophy on seven occasions.
Ireland won in 1970, 1980, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1994, and 1996; Sweden won in 1974, 1984, 1991, 1999, 2012, 2015, and 2023. You then have the United Kingdom, Luxembourg, France, and the Netherlands, all of which have won the Eurovision Song Contest five times. Israel has won four times.
What are the most iconic Eurovision songs that have stood the test of time?
There’s such a diverse range of music at the Eurovision Song Contest, and although most songs are quickly forgotten, others are remembered many years after they were performed.
It’s not always the winners’ songs that stand the test of time. Sometimes, songs that finished second, third, or much further down the leaderboard have become more famous than the winning songs. Other songs are remembered simply because of how terrible they were.
With that said, some of the most iconic Eurovision songs that you might want to check out on YouTube when you next get a chance are hits such as
- Making Your Mind Up by Bucks Fizz
- Ooh Aah…Just A Little Bit by Gina G
- Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi by Celine Dion
- Save Your Kisses for Me by Brotherhood of Man
- Poupée De Cire, Poupée De Son by France Gall
- Bailar Pegados by Sergio Dalma
That’s just to name a few.
Watch live on TV or YouTube
Unfortunately, if you plan on attending the live event in your country, it’s probably too late. Tickets for the live Eurovision show probably sold out several months ago.
The only other way to watch your favorite acts perform if you can’t get your hands on any tickets is to watch live on your local television channel broadcasting the final or on trusted video sharing/streaming platforms like YouTube. Don’t forget that the final this year is on May 17th.
