Eurovision Song Contest 2021
The Eurovision Song Contest 2021 was the 65th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest that took place in the Netherlands's second largest city Rotterdam, after Duncan Laurence won for his country in Tel Aviv, Israel.
The Eurovision Song Contest 2020 was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and was replaced with a live TV show called Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light. It was later announced that Rotterdam will host the 2021 edition. The contest took place from 18 to 22 May 2021 with two semi-finals and one final. The Netherlands hosted the contest for the fifth time.
The EBU confirmed that 39 countries will participate in 2021. Like the previous year, Hungary and Montenegro did not take part. Armenia also did not take part, while Belarus was disqualified after their intended entry violated the contest's rules. Due to the ongoing pandemic, the EBU presented several scenarios (A, B, C and D) in which the competition could take place.
Venue
The contest happened in Rotterdam Ahoy in Rotterdam and was organized by the Dutch broadcasters NPO, NOS and AVROTROS.
Hosts
There were four presenters hosting the contest in Rotterdam: Chantal Janzen, Jan Smit, Edsilia Rombley and Nikkie de Jager.
Slogan
The slogan of the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 was Open Up. It was already planned for the 2020 contest and later confirmed that it would be used again.
Rule changes
For the 2021 edition, it was announced by the EBU that pre-recorded backing vocals will be allowed for the live shows. In previous years these had to be performed live.
Entries
Because the contest was cancelled last year, many countries decided to send their representative from last year again. However, the EBU announced that completely new songs have to be submitted for 2021.
Participating countries
Semi-final 1
The first semi-final took place on 18 May 2021 at 21:00 (CEST).[1] Sixteen countries participated in the first semi-final. Those countries plus Germany, Italy and the Netherlands voted in this semi-final. Belarus was originally allocated to participate in the first half of the semi-final, but was disqualified from the contest after submitting an entry in violation of the rules.[2]
The highlighted countries qualified for the final.[3]
| Draw[4] | Country[5] | Artist[6] | Song[6] | Language(s) | Place | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 |  Lithuania
|
The Roop | "Discoteque" | English | 4 | 203 |
| 02 |  Slovenia
|
Ana Soklič | "Amen" | English | 13 | 44 |
| 03 |  Russia
|
Manizha | "Russian Woman" | Russian, English | 3 | 225 |
| 04 |  Sweden
|
Tusse | "Voices" | English | 7 | 142 |
| 05 | .svg){kind=small} Australia
|
Montaigne | "Technicolour" | English | 14 | 28 |
| 06 |  North Macedonia
|
Vasil | "Here I Stand" | English | 15 | 23 |
| 07 |  Ireland
|
Lesley Roy | "Maps" | English | 16 | 20 |
| 08 |  Cyprus
|
Elena Tsagrinou | "El diablo" | English | 6 | 170 |
| 09 |  Norway
|
Tix | "Fallen Angel" | English | 10 | 115 |
| 10 |  Croatia
|
Albina | "Tick-Tock" | English, Croatian | 11 | 110 |
| 11 | .svg){kind=small} Belgium
|
Hooverphonic | "The Wrong Place" | English | 9 | 117 |
| 12 |  Israel
|
Eden Alene | "Set Me Free" | English | 5 | 192 |
| 13 |  Romania
|
Roxen | "Amnesia" | English | 12 | 85 |
| 14 |  Azerbaijan
|
Efendi | "Mata Hari" | English | 8 | 138 |
| 15 |  Ukraine
|
Go_A | "Shum" (Шум) | Ukrainian | 2 | 267 |
| 16 |  Malta
|
Destiny | "Je me casse" | English | 1 | 325 |
Semi-final 2
The second semi-final took place on 20 May 2021 at 21:00 (CEST).[1] Seventeen countries participated in the second semi-final. Those countries plus France, Spain and the United Kingdom voted in this semi-final.[7] Armenia was originally allocated to participate in the second half of the semi-final, but withdrew from the contest due to social and political crises in the aftermath of the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war.[8]
The highlighted countries qualified for the final.[9]
| Draw[4] | Country[5] | Artist[10] | Song[10] | Language(s) | Place | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 |  San Marino
|
Senhit | "Adrenalina" | English | 9 | 118 |
| 02 |  Estonia
|
Uku Suviste | "The Lucky One" | English | 13 | 58 |
| 03 |  Czech Republic
|
Benny Cristo | "Omaga" | English | 15 | 23 |
| 04 |  Greece
|
Stefania | "Last Dance" | English | 6 | 184 |
| 05 |  Austria
|
Vincent Bueno | "Amen" | English | 12 | 66 |
| 06 |  Poland
|
Rafał | "The Ride" | English | 14 | 35 |
| 07 |  Moldova
|
Natalia Gordienko | "Sugar" | English | 7 | 179 |
| 08 |  Iceland
|
Daði og Gagnamagnið | "10 Years" | English | 2 | 288 |
| 09 |  Serbia
|
Hurricane | "Loco Loco" | Serbian | 8 | 124 |
| 10 |  Georgia
|
Tornike Kipiani | "You" | English | 16 | 16 |
| 11 |  Albania
|
Anxhela Peristeri | "Karma" | Albanian | 10 | 112 |
| 12 |  Portugal
|
The Black Mamba | "Love Is on My Side" | English | 4 | 239 |
| 13 |  Bulgaria
|
Victoria | "Growing Up Is Getting Old" | English | 3 | 250 |
| 14 |  Finland
|
Blind Channel | "Dark Side" | English | 5 | 234 |
| 15 |  Latvia
|
Samanta Tīna | "The Moon Is Rising" | English | 17 | 14 |
| 16 |  Switzerland
|
Gjon's Tears | "Tout l'Univers" | French | 1 | 291 |
| 17 |  Denmark
|
Fyr & Flamme | "Øve os på hinanden" | Danish | 11 | 89 |
Final
The final took place on 22 May 2021 at 21:00 (CEST).[1] Twenty-six countries participated in the final, with all thirty-nine participating countries eligible to vote.
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No return to the contest
These countries confirmed that they will not take part in 2021:
Eurovision Song Contest 2021 Media
Rotterdam Ahoy – host venue of the 2021 contest
The graphic design of the 2021 contest on display in Rotterdam
Stage and green room in the arena
A COVID-19 testing zone was set up outside Rotterdam Ahoy during the Eurovision event weeks.
Måneskin performing at Rock am Ring, at Nürburgring, Germany, in June 2022.
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References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Dates for Eurovision 2021 announced". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 15 June 2020. Archived from the original on 15 June 2020. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
- ↑ "EBU statement on Belarusian participation". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 26 March 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
- ↑ "First Semi-Final 2021: The Qualifiers". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 18 May 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Semi-Final running orders revealed". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 30 March 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "41 Countries to participate at Eurovision 2021". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 26 October 2020. Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Eurovision Song Contest 2021 First Semi-Final". European Broadcasting Union. 30 March 2021. Archived from the original on 31 March 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
- ↑ Groot, Evert (17 November 2020). "2020 Semi-Final line-up to stay for 2021". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 18 November 2020. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
- ↑ "Armenia withdraws from Eurovision Song Contest 2021". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 5 March 2021. Archived from the original on 6 March 2021. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
- ↑ "Second Semi-Final 2021: The Qualifiers". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 20 May 2021.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Eurovision Song Contest 2021 Second Semi-Final". European Broadcasting Union. 30 March 2021. Archived from the original on 31 March 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
- ↑ "Grand Final Running Order". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 20 May 2021. Archived from the original on 21 May 2021. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Eurovision Song Contest 2021 Grand Final". European Broadcasting Union. 30 March 2021. Archived from the original on 31 January 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.