 | Facts & Figures |
|---|---|
| Date | Saturday 29 May 2010 |
| Location | Telenor Arena Oslo, Norway |
| Broadcaster | Norsk rikskringkasting (NRK) |
| Hosts | Erik Solbakken, Haddy N’jie, Nadia Hasnaoui |
| Executive Producer | Jon Ola Sand |
| EBU Scrutineer | Svante Stockselius |
| Director | Ole Jørgen Grønlund Kim Strømstad |
| Opening act | Alexander Rybak performing „Fairytale“ |
| Interval act | A flashmob styled performance with Madcon performing „Glow“, alongside live and taped footage of audiences dancing around Europe |
| Winner | [flag=de] Lena from Germany |
For the first time this millennium, the Eurovision Song Contest was held in the capital of Norway, Oslo. 39 countries took part in the contest, which had two Semi-Finals and a Grand Final.
Thirty-nine countries took part in the contest, with Georgia returning after a one year hiatus, and Andorra, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Montenegro withdrawing. Lithuania originally announced its withdrawal from the competition, but was later among the 39 participants confirmed by the EBU. A global financial crisis affected how the event was run when several countries elected not to compete due to budget cuts.
The interval act involved a number of live public outdoor dance events from across Europe, which were planned for promotional purposes, but done in the style of a series of spontaneous flash-mobs. The outdoor footage was intercut with webcam footage from individual private households.
The final took place on 29 May 2010 at 21:00 CEST in Telenor Arena, Bærum, Akershus, Greater Oslo, Norway. The „Big Four“ and the host country, Norway, qualified directly for the final. From the two semi-finals on 25 and 27 May 2010, twenty countries qualified for the final. A total of twenty-five countries competed in the final. The voting system used was similar to that used in the 2009 contest (with a combination of televotes and jury votes), but viewers were able to vote during the performances; the voting window ended 15 minutes after the conclusion of the songs.
About the winner
While she had been the main favourite to win for months, still, the victory of Lena for Germany with her song Satellite still came as a total surprise for many. Her simplistic performance gathered votes across Europe and became one of the biggest hits ever in the history of the contest.
She went on to defend her title the year after and managed to gather a top 10 position with her entry Taken By A Stranger.
Trivia
- Spain’s entry had to be performed again as during the very first performance, a widely-known stuntman had come on stage and acted as if he had been part of the show.
- The Norwegian broadcaster had decided they wanted to take the contest back to the basics and after the contest in 2009, where LEDs were widely used, they used none.
The Participants
| # | Representing country | Performer(s) | Song title, writer(s) and composer(s) | Points | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Azerbaijan İctimai | Safura participant profile | Drip Drop | 145 | 05 |
| 02 | Spain TVE | Daniel Diges participant profile | Algo Pequeñito (Something Tiny) | 068 | 15 |
| 03 | Norway NRK | Didrik Solli-Tangen participant profile | My Heart Is Yours | 035 | 20 |
| 04 | Moldova TRM | Sunstroke Project & Olia Tira participant profile | Run Away | 027 | 22 |
| 05 | Cyprus CyBC | Jon Lilygreen & The Islanders participant profile | Life Looks Better In Spring | 027 | 21 |
| 06 | Bosnia & Herzegovina BHRT | Vukašin Brajić participant profile | Thunder And Lightning | 051 | 17 |
| 07 | Belgium VRT | Tom Dice participant profile | Me And My Guitar | 143 | 06 |
| 08 | Serbia RTS | Milan Stanković participant profile | Ovo Je Balkan | 072 | 13 |
| 09 | Belarus BTRC | 3+2 participant profile | Butterflies | 018 | 24 |
| 10 | Ireland RTÉ | Niamh Kavanagh participant profile | It’s For You | 025 | 23 |
| 11 | Greece ERT | Giorgos Alkaios & Friends participant profile | OPA | 140 | 08 |
| 12 | United Kingdom BBC | Josh participant profile | That Sounds Good To Me | 010 | 25 |
| 13 | Georgia GPB | Sofia Nizharadze participant profile | Shine | 136 | 09 |
| 14 | Turkey TRT | maNga participant profile | We Could Be The Same | 170 | 02 |
| 15 | Albania RTSH | Juliana Pasha participant profile | It’s All About You | 062 | 16 |
| 16 | Iceland RÚV | Hera Björk participant profile | Je Ne Sais Quoi | 041 | 19 |
| 17 | Ukraine NTU | Alyosha participant profile | Sweet People | 108 | 10 |
| 18 | France France 3 | Jessy Matador participant profile | Allez Olla Olé | 082 | 12 |
| 19 | Romania TVR | Paula Seling & Ovi participant profile | Playing With Fire | 162 | 03 |
| 20 | Russia RTR | Peter Nalitch & Friends participant profile | Lost And Forgotten | 090 | 11 |
| 21 | Armenia AMPTV | Eva Rivas participant profile | Apricot Stone | 141 | 07 |
| 22 | Germany NDR | Lena participant profile | Satellite | 246 | 01 |
| 23 | Portugal RTP | Filipa Azevedo participant profile | Há Dias Assim | 043 | 18 |
| 24 | Israel IBA | Harel Skaat participant profile | Milim | 071 | 14 |
| 25 | Denmark DR | Chanée & N’evergreen participant profile | In A Moment Like This | 149 | 04 |
Scoreboard
| Participant | | | | | | |  |  | | |  |  |  | | | | | | | |  |  |  | | |  | | | | |  |  | |  |  |  | | | | Points | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Azerbaijan | 6 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 12 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 2 | 12 | 12 | 145 | 5 | |||||||||||||||||
| Spain | 7 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 4 | 12 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 68 | 15 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Norway | 2 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 35 | 20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Moldova | 6 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 27 | 22 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cyprus | 4 | 4 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 27 | 21 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bosnia & Herzegovina | 6 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 12 | 4 | 8 | 51 | 17 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Belgium | 10 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 12 | 6 | 10 | 10 | 4 | 7 | 10 | 3 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 143 | 6 | |||||||||||||||||
| Serbia | 3 | 12 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 10 | 5 | 8 | 7 | 10 | 1 | 72 | 13 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Belarus | 1 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 18 | 24 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ireland | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 25 | 23 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Greece | 12 | 3 | 12 | 6 | 5 | 12 | 7 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 7 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 12 | 140 | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||
| United Kingdom | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 10 | 25 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Georgia | 12 | 8 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 136 | 9 | ||||||||||||||
| Turkey | 8 | 12 | 3 | 6 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 12 | 5 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 170 | 2 | |||||||||||||
| Albania | 3 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 1 | 10 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 62 | 16 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Iceland | 2 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 41 | 19 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ukraine | 8 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 108 | 10 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| France | 6 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 3 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 82 | 12 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Romania | 5 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 12 | 10 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 10 | 10 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 162 | 3 | ||||||||||
| Russia | 10 | 3 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 10 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 90 | 11 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Armenia | 5 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 12 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 12 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 1 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 141 | 7 | |||||||||||||||||
| Germany | 10 | 1 | 10 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 12 | 8 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 4 | 12 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 4 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 246 | 1 | ||||||
| Portugal | 4 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 43 | 18 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Israel | 4 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 71 | 14 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Denmark | 2 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 12 | 4 | 10 | 3 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 4 | 12 | 1 | 7 | 12 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 149 | 4 |