2022 Turin, Italy

The Eurovision Song Contest 2022 was the 66th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Turin, Italy, following the country’s victory at the 2021 contest with the song „Zitti e buoni“ by Måneskin. Organized by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Radiotelevisione italiana (RAI), the contest was held at the PalaOlimpico and consisted of two semi-finals on 10 and 12 May, and a final on 14 May 2022. The three live shows were presented by Italian television presenter Alessandro Cattelan, Italian singer Laura Pausini and Lebanese-British singer Mika.

Forty countries participated in the contest, with Armenia and Montenegro returning after their absences from the previous edition. Russia had originally planned to participate but was excluded due to its invasion of Ukraine.

The winner was Ukraine with the song „Stefania“, performed by Kalush Orchestra and written by the group’s members Ihor Didenchuk, Oleh Psiuk, Tymofii Muzychuk and Vitalii Duzhyk, along with Ivan Klimenko. Ukraine’s 439 points received from the televote in the final are the most televoting points received in the contest’s history to date, making „Stefania“ the first song sung entirely in Ukrainian and the first song with hip-hop elements to win the contest. The United Kingdom, Spain, Sweden and Serbia rounded out the top five, with the United Kingdom and Spain achieving their best results since 1998 and 1995 respectively, and Serbia achieving its best result since 2012. This was the second year in succession, after a previous gap of 26 years, that the top three songs were all sung in languages native to their respective countries. It was also a record-extending sixteenth time that the United Kingdom finished in second place. Italy finished in sixth place, thereby achieving the best result for a host country since 2016.

The EBU reported that the contest had a television audience of 161 million viewers in 34 European markets, a decrease of 22 million viewers from the previous edition, however, it is noted that this is due to the exclusion of Russia and the lack of audience figures from Ukraine, with the overall figures up by 7 million viewers in a comparable market from 2021. An increase of three percent in the 15–24 year old age range was also reported. A total of 18 million viewers watched the contest online on YouTube and TikTok.

Location

PalaOlimpico, Turin – host venue of the 2022 contest

The 2022 contest took place in Turin, Italy, following the country’s victory at the 2021 edition with the song „Zitti e buoni“, performed by Måneskin. It was the third time that Italy had hosted the contest, having previously done so for the 1965 and 1991 contests, held in Naples and Rome respectively. The selected venue was the 13,300-seat PalaOlimpico, a multi-purpose indoor arena located in the Santa Rita district, which serves as a venue for events including concerts, exhibitions, trade fairs, conferences, and sports (mainly those requiring an ice rink, such as ice hockey and curling). PalaOlimpico had previously hosted the ice hockey events at the 2006 Winter Olympics, and the opening ceremonies of the 2007 Winter Universiade and will host the same event in 2025.

The venue returned to its full capacity for the contest, after the previous edition in Rotterdam saw a limited audience of 3,500 people as a precaution against the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the audience was required to wear masks at all times inside the venue, unlike in Rotterdam where mask-wearing was not enforced whenever the audience was seated. Nearly all COVID-19 prevention measures for the contest were dropped by 11 May 2022, with testing only required whenever symptoms were exhibited.

In addition to the main venue, the host city also organised side events in tandem with the contest. The Eurovision Village was the official Eurovision Song Contest fan and sponsors area during the event weeks, where it was possible to watch performances by contest participants and local artists, as well as the live shows broadcast from the main venue. It was located at Parco del Valentino and open from 7 to 14 May 2022. The EuroClub, which took place across ten different locations in Turin, hosted the official after-parties and private performances by contest participants. Unlike in previous years, access to the EuroClub was not restricted to accredited fans, delegates and press. The „Turquoise Carpet“ and Opening Ceremony events, where the contestants and their delegations were presented before the accredited press and fans, took place at the Palace of Venaria on 8 May 2022.

Bidding phase

Between 23 and 28 May 2021, many cities across Italy expressed interest in hosting the contest. Representatives from the cities of Bologna, Milan, Pesaro, Naples and Turin voiced their interest, as well as the Mayor of Reggio Emilia, Luca Vecchi, who hoped to host the contest in the new RCF Arena, the largest open-air arena in Europe with a capacity of 100,000 spectators. The mayors of Rome, Rimini and Florence soon after also expressed interest in hosting the contest and were joined by Sanremo, Verona and Bari. Marco Di Maio [it], member of the Italian Chamber of Deputies, also suggested that if Rimini were to host the contest, it should be a co-production with San Marino RTV.

Host broadcaster RAI launched the bidding process on 7 July 2021. In the first phase of this process, any interested cities were to present their bid through certified email by 12 July, after which RAI and the EBU would proceed to send all of them a bid book with more detailed requirements for the cities to submit their plans for review.

On 9 July 2021, the city of Turin officially announced its bid. On the same day, the city of Pesaro did the same, proposing the Vitrifrigo Arena as a possible venue to host the event. They were followed by Bologna and Jesolo on 12 July, and Rimini and Bertinoro (jointly with Forlì and Cesena) on 13 July. On 13 July, RAI announced that 17 cities had submitted their bid for hosting the contest and would be provided the following day with the bid books. They had until 4 August to draft and submit their detailed plans, which 11 cities did. On 24 August, it was reported that Bologna, Milan, Pesaro, Rimini and Turin would be the cities left in the running to host the contest.

The choice among them was meant to be announced by the end of August; however, this did not happen, and in mid-September Stefano Coletta [it], director of Rai 1, stated that the selection was behind time to ensure „transparency and precision“. On 8 October 2021, the EBU and RAI announced Turin as the host city, with PalaOlimpico as the chosen venue for the contest.

Production

The Eurovision Song Contest 2022 was produced by the Italian public broadcaster Radiotelevisione italiana (RAI). The Italian government allocated around €1.5 million as part of the budget needed to host the event, while the municipality of Turin and the regional government of Piedmont contributed around €10 million in total. Claudio Fasulo [it] and Simona Martorelli served as executive producers, Cristian Biondani [it] and Duccio Forzano [it] served as directors of the three live shows, Claudio Santucci served as head of show, and Emanuele Cristofoli served as artistic director for the opening and interval acts.

Visual design

The theme art and slogan for the contest, „The Sound of Beauty“, was unveiled on 21 January 2022. Designed by Rome-based studio Flopicco, the artwork was built around the symmetrical structure and patterns of cymatics to convey the visual properties of sound, which also reflects Italian garden design, while the typography was inspired by early-20th century Italian poster art; the colours were drawn from those of the Italian flag.

Presenters

Alessandro Cattelan, Mika and Laura Pausini, presenters of the 2022 contest

Television presenter Alessandro Cattelan and singers Laura Pausini and Mika were the presenters of the 2022 contest. They had already been named as likely hosts by Italian news agency Adnkronos and TV magazine TV Sorrisi e Canzoni; and were officially confirmed during the second night of the Sanremo Music Festival 2022 on 2 February, after appearing on that show as special guests.

The „Turquoise Carpet“ and Opening Ceremony events were hosted by Gabriele Corsi [it], Carolina Di Domenico, Mario Acampa [it] and Laura Carusino [it]. Acampa, Carusino and Di Domenico also moderated the contest’s press conferences.

Stage design

Stage and green room in the arena

The stage design for the 2022 contest was revealed on 18 February 2022. Designed by Rome-based stage designer Francesca Montinaro [it] and dubbed „The Sun Within“, the stage design was based around the movements and light of a kinetic sun, with the intended ability to showcase theatrical motion. The design also featured a working water cascade and a green room modelled after an Italian garden. Montinaro had previous experience in stage design, having done so for the Sanremo Music Festival in 2013 and 2019. This marked the first time since 2016 that German stage designer Florian Wieder [de] did not design the Eurovision stage.

Opening and interval acts

On 30 April 2022, the EBU released information about the opening and interval acts.

The first semi-final was opened by a performance showcasing Italian ingenuity and creativity, accompanied by the official anthem of the contest, „The Sound of Beauty“, performed by Sherol Dos Santos, while the interval featured a medley of „Horizon in Your Eyes“, „Satisfaction“ and „Golden Nights [it]“ performed by Dardust, Benny Benassi and Sophie and the Giants with conductor Sylvia Catasta, a brief homage to Raffaella Carrà performed by the contest presenters, and Diodato performing „Fai rumore“.

Il Volo

Il Volo performed „Grande amore“ during the interval of the second semi-final.

The second semi-final was opened by „The Italian Way“, an act built around Italian improvisation performed by co-presenter Alessandro Cattelan, while the interval featured a medley of „Fragile“ and „People Have the Power“ performed by co-presenters Laura Pausini and Mika, and Il Volo performing a new version of „Grande amore“.

The final was opened by the traditional flag parade, introducing all twenty-five finalists, accompanied by the Rockin‘ 1000 performing “Give Peace a Chance” and co-presenter Laura Pausini performing a medley of „Benvenuto“, „Io canto“, „La solitudine“, „Le cose che vivi“ and „Scatola [it]“. The interval acts included Måneskin performing their new single „Supermodel“ and “If I Can Dream”, Gigliola Cinquetti performing her winning song „Non ho l’età“, and co-presenter Mika performing a medley of „Love Today“, „Grace Kelly“, his new single „Yo Yo“ and „Happy Ending“. Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti also appeared in a pre-recorded message from the International Space Station.

Format

Entries

For the second year in a row, delegations had the option to use pre-recorded backing vocals, though each delegation could still use backing singers – whether on or off stage – or a combination of live and recorded backing vocals. However, all lead vocals performing the melody of the song must still be live. The EBU also required all national broadcasters to create a ‚live-on-tape‘ backup recording prior to the contest which could be used if a participant was unable to travel to Turin, or subjected to quarantine on arrival. The 2022 contest also saw a tightening of the rules around song eligibility. Previously, the rules stated that the competing songs must not have been commercially released prior to 1 September of the previous year, now, a song may be ineligible to compete if it has been released to the public in any way, including live performances, before 1 September of the previous year. Enforcement of the rule was subject to the responsibility of the participating broadcasters.

Palace of Venaria, location of the Opening Ceremony

With all participating artists having performed live in Turin, the majority of the ‚live-on-tape‘ performances were released on the contest’s official YouTube channel over a period of ten days, from 14 to 23 June 2022. Australia, Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Georgia, Italy, Moldova, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and United Kingdom opted not to release their performances, while Ukraine was exempted from the obligation to record theirs and Armenia removed theirs minutes after its release for unknown reasons. Despite Montenegro not releasing their performance to the contest’s official channel, it was nonetheless made available on the channel of the country’s representative Vladana.

The 2022 contest was the first edition to not feature any competing song with lyrics in French.

Semi-final allocation draw

Pot 1Pot 2Pot 3Pot 4Pot 5Pot 6
 Albania
 Croatia
 Montenegro
 North Macedonia
 Serbia
 Slovenia
 Australia
 Denmark
 Finland
 Iceland
 Norway
 Sweden
 Armenia
 Azerbaijan
 Georgia
 Israel
 Russia
 Ukraine
 Bulgaria
 Cyprus
 Greece
 Malta
 Portugal
 San Marino
 Estonia
 Latvia
 Lithuania
 Moldova
 Poland
 Romania
 Austria
 Belgium
 Czech Republic
 Ireland
 Netherlands
  Switzerland
Palazzo Madama, host venue for the allocation draw of the 2022 contest

The draw to determine the participating countries‘ semi-finals took place on 25 January 2022 at 12:00 CET, at Palazzo Madama. The thirty-six semi-finalists were divided over six 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 five automatic qualifiers – „Big Five“ countries France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom – would broadcast and vote in. The ceremony was hosted by Carolina Di Domenico and Mario Acampa, with Acampa replacing Gabriele Corsi who tested positive for COVID-19. It included the passing of the host city insignia from Ahmed Aboutaleb, the mayor of previous host city Rotterdam, to Stefano Lo Russo, the mayor of Turin.

Postcards

The „postcards“ were 40-second video introductions shown on television whilst the stage is being prepared for the next contestant to perform their entry. Filmed between February and April, and directed by Matteo Lanzi, the 2022 postcards were based on the „Sound of Beauty“ theme of the contest. Guided by a drone named „Leo“, each postcard showcased a different locale in Italy adorned by pictures and various artistic elements related to the acts, while the participating artists themselves appeared via footage superimposed through chroma keying. The following locations were used for each participating country:

[flag=al] Albania – Su Nuraxi, Barumini, Sardinia
[flag=am] Armenia – Marmore Falls, Terni, Umbria
[flag=au] Australia – MART, Rovereto, Trentino-South Tyrol
[flag=at] Austria – Miramare Castle, Trieste, Friuli Venezia Giulia
[flag=az] Azerbaijan – Villa Monastero, Varenna, Lombardy
[flag=be] Belgium – Perugia, Umbria
[flag=bg] Bulgaria – Castel del Monte, Andria, Apulia
[flag=hr] Croatia – Grinzane Cavour, Cuneo, Piedmont
[flag=cy] Cyprus – Matterhorn, Aosta Valley
[flag=cz] Czech Republic – Caserta, Campania
[flag=dk] Denmark – Procida, Naples, Campania
[flag=ee] Estonia – Sacra di San Michele, Sant’Ambrogio di Torino, Piedmont
[flag=fi] Finland – Laghi di Fusine, Udine, Friuli Venezia Giulia
[flag=fr] France – Cavour, Piedmont
[flag=ge] Georgia – Burano, Venice, Veneto
[flag=de] Germany – Lingotto, Turin, Piedmont
[flag=gr] Greece – Selinunte, Trapani, Sicily
[flag=is] Iceland – Cortina d’Ampezzo, Belluno, Veneto
[flag=ie] Ireland – Matera, Basilicata
[flag=il] Israel – Manarola, Cinque Terre, Liguria
[flag=it] Italy – Mole Antonelliana, Turin, Piedmont
[flag=lv] Latvia – Merano, Trentino-South Tyrol
[flag=li] Lithuania – Bergamo, Lombardy
[flag=ml] Malta – Abbey of San Galgano, Siena, Tuscany
[flag=md] Moldova – Urbino, Marche
[flag=me] Montenegro – Monte Conero, Ancona, Marche
[flag=nl] Netherlands – Ravenna, Emilia-Romagna
[flag=mk] North Macedonia – Cala Luna [it], Nuoro, Sardinia
[flag=no] Norway – Lago di Scanno, L’Aquila, Abruzzo
[flag=pl] Poland – Scala dei Turchi, Agrigento, Sicily
[flag=pt] Portugal – Genoa, Liguria
[flag=ro] Romania – Isola di Capo Rizzuto, Crotone, Calabria
[flag=sm] San Marino – Rome, Lazio
[flag=rs] Serbia – Castle of Rocca Calascio, L’Aquila, Abruzzo
[flag=si] Slovenia – Civita di Bagnoregio, Viterbo, Lazio
[flag=es] Spain – Alagna Valsesia, Vercelli, Piedmont
[flag=se] Sweden – Rimini, Emilia-Romagna
[flag=ch] Switzerland – Termoli, Campobasso, Molise
[flag=ua] Ukraine – Florence, Tuscany
[flag=gb] United Kingdom – Orta San Giulio, Novara, Piedmont

Participating countries

The EBU initially announced on 20 October 2021 that 41 countries would participate in the 2022 contest. The list included all countries that participated in the 2021 contest, along with Armenia and Montenegro, both of which had last taken part in 2019 (Armenia was also set to compete in the cancelled 2020 edition). On 25 February 2022, the EBU announced that Russia was excluded from the contest due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, thereby reducing the number of participating countries to 40.

Returning artists

The contest featured four representatives who also previously performed as lead artists for the same country. Stoyan Yankoulov [bg], a member of Intelligent Music Project, had previously represented Bulgaria at the 2007 and 2013 contests alongside Elitsa Todorova; Zdob și Zdub had represented Moldova in 2005 and 2011; Mahmood had represented Italy in 2019; and Ihor Didenchuk [uk], a member of Kalush Orchestra, had previously represented Ukraine in 2021 as a member of Go_A. In addition, Ihan Haydar, who had previously represented Denmark in 2012 as a member of Soluna Samay’s backup band, returned as a member of Reddi.

Semi-final 1

The first semi-final took place on 10 May 2022 at 21:00 (CEST). Seventeen countries participated in the first semi-final. Those countries plus France and Italy voted in this semi-final. Russia was originally allocated to participate in the second half of the first semi-final, but was excluded from the contest due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. The highlighted countries qualified for the final.

OrderCountryArtistSongLanguagePlacePointsResult
1 AlbaniaRonela Hajati„Sekret“Albanian, English1258
2 LatviaCiti Zēni„Eat Your Salad“English1455
3 LithuaniaMonika Liu„Sentimentai“Lithuanian7159Qualified
4 SwitzerlandMarius Bear„Boys Do Cry“English9118Qualified
5 SloveniaLPS„Disko“Slovene1715
6 UkraineKalush Orchestra„Stefania“ (Стефанія)Ukrainian1337Qualified
7 BulgariaIntelligent Music Project„Intention“English1629
8 NetherlandsS10„De diepte“Dutch2221Qualified
9 MoldovaZdob și Zdub and Advahov Brothers„Trenulețul“Romanian, English8154Qualified
10 PortugalMaro„Saudade, saudade“English, Portuguese4208Qualified
11 CroatiaMia Dimšić„Guilty Pleasure“English, Croatian1175
12 DenmarkReddi„The Show“English1355
13 AustriaLumix feat. Pia Maria„Halo“English1542
14 IcelandSystur„Með hækkandi sól“Icelandic10103Qualified
15 GreeceAmanda Georgiadi Tenfjord„Die Together“English3211Qualified
16 NorwaySubwoolfer„Give That Wolf a Banana“English6177Qualified
17 ArmeniaRosa Linn„Snap“English5187Qualified

Semi-final 2

The second semi-final took place on 12 May 2022 at 21:00 (CEST). Eighteen countries participated in the second semi-final. Those countries plus Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom voted in this semi-final. The highlighted countries qualified for the final.

OrderCountryArtistSongLanguagePlacePointsResult
1 FinlandThe Rasmus„Jezebel“English7162Qualified
2 IsraelMichael Ben David„I.M“English1361
3 SerbiaKonstrakta„In corpore sano“Serbian, Latin3237Qualified
4 AzerbaijanNadir Rustamli„Fade to Black“English1096Qualified
5 GeorgiaCircus Mircus„Lock Me In“English1822
6 MaltaEmma Muscat„I Am What I Am“English1647
7 San MarinoAchille Lauro„Stripper“Italian, English1450
8 AustraliaSheldon Riley„Not the Same“English2243Qualified
9 CyprusAndromache„Ela“ (Έλα)English, Greek1263
10 IrelandBrooke„That’s Rich“English1547
11 North MacedoniaAndrea„Circles“English1176
12 EstoniaStefan„Hope“English5209Qualified
13 RomaniaWRS„Llámame“English, Spanish9118Qualified
14 PolandOchman„River“English6198Qualified
15 MontenegroVladana„Breathe“English, Italian1733
16 BelgiumJérémie Makiese„Miss You“English8151Qualified
17 SwedenCornelia Jakobs„Hold Me Closer“English1396Qualified
18 Czech RepublicWe Are Domi„Lights Off“English4227Qualified

Final

The final took place on 14 May 2022 at 21:00 (CEST). Twenty-five countries participated in the final, with all forty participating countries eligible to vote.

OrderCountryArtistSongLanguagePlacePoints
1 Czech RepublicWe Are Domi„Lights Off“English2238
2 RomaniaWRS„Llámame“English, Spanish1865
3 PortugalMaro„Saudade, saudade“English, Portuguese9207
4 FinlandThe Rasmus„Jezebel“English2138
5SwitzerlandMarius Bear„Boys Do Cry“English1778
6 FranceAlvan and Ahez„Fulenn“Breton2417
7 NorwaySubwoolfer„Give That Wolf a Banana“English10182
8 ArmeniaRosa Linn„Snap“English2061
9 ItalyMahmood and Blanco„Brividi“Italian6268
10 SpainChanel„SloMo“Spanish, English3459
11 NetherlandsS10„De diepte“Dutch11171
12 UkraineKalush Orchestra„Stefania“ (Стефанія)Ukrainian1631
13 GermanyMalik Harris„Rockstars“English256
14 LithuaniaMonika Liu„Sentimentai“Lithuanian14128
15 AzerbaijanNadir Rustamli„Fade to Black“English16106
16 BelgiumJérémie Makiese„Miss You“English1964
17 GreeceAmanda Georgiadi Tenfjord„Die Together“English8215
18 IcelandSystur„Með hækkandi sól“Icelandic2320
19 MoldovaZdob și Zdub and Advahov Brothers„Trenulețul“Romanian, English7253
20 SwedenCornelia Jakobs„Hold Me Closer“English4438
21 AustraliaSheldon Riley„Not the Same“English15125
22 United KingdomSam Ryder„Space Man“English2466
23 PolandOchman„River“English12151
24 SerbiaKonstrakta„In corpore sano“Serbian, Latin5312
25 EstoniaStefan„Hope“English13141

Voting

Semi-final 1

Semi-final 1 voting results (jury vote)

ContestantsTotal ScoreTelevoting scoreAlbaniaLatviaLithuaniaSwitzerlandSloveniaUkraineBulgariaNetherlandsMoldovaPortugalCroatiaDenmarkAustriaIcelandGreeceNorwayArmeniaFranceItaly
Albania584612
Latvia55162233412114421
Lithuania1591031312261058522
Switzerland1181164104612710466754556
Slovenia158115
Ukraine3372021212128781277710367107
Bulgaria2918110
Netherlands221791038121012428212876812810
Moldova15413512117115
Portugal208874574685105128106510106
Croatia7533383633844
Denmark5520655523513
Austria4236213
Iceland10339584645310442234
Greece2116081061057101285810621281212
Norway17710427372176723412163
Armenia187105721110846312123778

Semi-final 1 voting results (televote)

ContestantsTotal ScoreJury VoteAlbaniaLatviaLithuaniaSwitzerlandSloveniaUkraineBulgariaNetherlandsMoldovaPortugalCroatiaDenmarkAustriaIcelandGreeceNorwayArmeniaFranceItaly
Albania58128612212258
Latvia55391051
Lithuania1595611035125566684558761
Switzerland118107321311
Slovenia1578
Ukraine33713581212101012121212121212121010121012
Bulgaria29111251
Netherlands221142336236388345841444
Moldova1541987771081010106107666710
Portugal2081215681224664131232886
Croatia75426612216
Denmark55352113364
Austria426414324242352
Iceland10364521842773
Greece21115110817314121013
Norway1777327547471077107107325
Armenia187827445210875558385127

Split results (Semi-final 1)

PlaceCombinedJuryTelevoting
CountryPointsCountryPointsCountryPoints
1 Ukraine337 Greece151 Ukraine202
2 Netherlands221 Netherlands142 Moldova135
3 Greece211 Ukraine135 Armenia105
4 Portugal208 Portugal121 Norway104
5 Armenia187 Switzerland107 Lithuania103
6 Norway177 Armenia82 Portugal87
7 Lithuania159 Norway73 Netherlands79
8 Moldova154 Iceland64 Greece60
9 Switzerland118 Lithuania56 Albania46
10 Iceland103 Croatia42 Iceland39
11 Croatia75 Latvia39 Austria36
12 Albania58 Denmark35 Croatia33
13 Denmark55 Moldova19 Denmark20
14 Latvia55 Albania12 Bulgaria18
15 Austria42 Bulgaria11 Latvia16
16 Bulgaria29 Slovenia7 Switzerland11
17 Slovenia15 Austria6 Slovenia8

Semi-final 2

Split results (Semi-final 2)

PlaceCombinedJuryTelevoting
CountryPointsCountryPointsCountryPoints
1 Sweden396 Sweden222 Sweden174
2 Australia243 Australia169 Serbia174
3 Serbia237 Estonia113 Czech Republic125
4 Czech Republic227 Belgium105 Poland114
5 Estonia209 Czech Republic102 Romania100
6 Poland198 Azerbaijan96 Finland99
7 Finland162 Poland84 Estonia96
8 Belgium151 Finland63 Australia74
9 Romania118 Serbia63 Cyprus54
10 Azerbaijan96 North Macedonia56 Belgium46
11 North Macedonia76 Israel34 Ireland35
12 Cyprus63 Malta27 San Marino29
13 Israel61 San Marino21 Israel27
14 San Marino50 Romania18 Montenegro22
15 Ireland47 Georgia13 Malta20
16 Malta47 Ireland12 North Macedonia20
17 Montenegro33 Montenegro11 Georgia9
18 Georgia22 Cyprus9 Azerbaijan0

Semi-final 2 voting results (televote)

ContestantsTotal scoreJury scoreFinlandIsraelSerbiaAzerbaijanGeorgiaMaltaSan MarinoAustraliaCyprusIrelandNorth MacedoniaEstoniaRomaniaPolandMontenegroBelgiumSwedenCzech RepublicGermanySpainUnited Kingdom
Finland1629955433324844454212
Israel6127121031173231
Serbia23717481322457127255
Azerbaijan96078444361633535410128
Georgia22911353
Malta4720221166171
San Marino502952212
Australia24374101021010101010551010101081286103
Cyprus6354342
Ireland47356141
North Macedonia76202157155110127
Estonia2099643107787578277610744
Romania1181004284
Poland198114183886888361376
Montenegro3322731
Belgium151467655583210566886582
Sweden3961741212121212121212121271212121210127612
Czech Republic2271256646676241078824610

Semi-final 2 voting results (jury vote)

ContestantsTotal scoreTelevoting scoreFinlandIsraelSerbiaAzerbaijanGeorgiaMaltaSan MarinoAustraliaCyprusIrelandNorth MacedoniaEstoniaRomaniaPolandMontenegroBelgiumSwedenCzech RepublicGermanySpainUnited Kingdom
Finland16263156632218124641210764
Israel61341010232
Serbia23763881212121212412410712610121056
Azerbaijan9696
Georgia22132511
Malta4727231333122
San Marino50214852433
Australia2431696672774753233453
Cyprus63910121145738111
Ireland471233811712
North Macedonia76568102
Estonia2091131244733618107788422
Romania1181832665584105258345127
Poland1988457134568122612127712410
Montenegro33111210
Belgium15110511341624751551
Sweden396222101258810101071071012126106885
Czech Republic2271027107242675868684566108

Final

Split results (Final)

PlaceCombinedJuryTelevoting
CountryPointsCountryPointsCountryPoints
1 Ukraine631 United Kingdom283 Ukraine439
2 United Kingdom466 Sweden258 Moldova239
3 Spain459 Spain231 Spain228
4 Sweden438 Ukraine192 Serbia225
5 Serbia312 Portugal171 United Kingdom183
6 Italy268 Greece158 Sweden180
7 Moldova253 Italy158 Norway146
8 Greece215 Netherlands129 Italy110
9 Portugal207 Australia123 Poland105
10 Norway182 Azerbaijan103 Estonia98
11 Netherlands171 Serbia87 Lithuania93
12 Poland151 Switzerland78 Greece57
13 Estonia141 Belgium59 Romania53
14 Lithuania128 Poland46 Netherlands42
15 Australia125 Estonia43 Portugal36
16 Azerbaijan106 Armenia40 Finland26
17 Switzerland78 Norway36 Armenia21
18 Romania65 Lithuania35 Iceland10
19 Belgium64 Czech Republic33 France8
20 Armenia61 Moldova14 Germany6
21 Finland38 Romania12 Belgium5
22 Czech Republic38 Finland12 Czech Republic5
23 Iceland20 Iceland10 Azerbaijan3
24 France17 France9 Australia2
25 Germany6 Germany0 Switzerland0

Final voting results (jury vote)

ContestantsTotal scoreTelevoting scoreNetherlandsSan MarinoNorth MacedoniaMaltaUkraineAlbaniaEstoniaAzerbaijanPortugalGermanyBelgiumNorwayIsraelPolandGreeceMoldovaBulgariaSerbiaIcelandCyprusLatviaSpainSwitzerlandDenmarkFranceArmeniaMontenegroRomaniaIrelandSloveniaGeorgiaCroatiaLithuaniaAustriaFinlandUnited KingdomSwedenAustraliaCzech RepublicItaly
Czech Republic38531222322754
Romania6553174
Portugal20736810177510732475658184743710810365
Finland3826561
Switzerland7801011622157731255171263
France178171
Norway1821463328515432
Armenia61212414576128
Italy2681103771210108841161102101046121044323
Spain45922851212125512810731538436845128112156521012127
Netherlands171428614745134441010443374268512
Ukraine6314392768106371212107123510661238681274
Germany66
Lithuania1289325221132107
Azerbaijan106374253363121312101213772
Belgium6456324468256157
Greece215571210176341221212721212322433464310
Iceland20106112
Moldova2532392615
Sweden438180156104812877812108512510777571010853712121010
Australia1252765638515686828462861012
United Kingdom46618348881210412101212610810101738366125882121012108126
Poland1511054242610828
Serbia312225103446125612171484
Estonia14198551035618

Final voting results (televote)

ContestantsTotal scoreJury vote scoreNetherlandsSan MarinoNorth MacedoniaMaltaUkraineAlbaniaEstoniaAzerbaijanPortugalGermanyBelgiumNorwayIsraelPolandGreeceMoldovaBulgariaSerbiaIcelandCyprusLatviaSpainSwitzerlandDenmarkFranceArmeniaMontenegroRomaniaIrelandSloveniaGeorgiaCroatiaLithuaniaAustriaFinlandUnited KingdomSwedenAustraliaCzech RepublicItaly
Czech Republic38335
Romania651213210454101238
Portugal207171114764571
Finland381214281271
Switzerland7878
France179122111
Norway1823652242472144661810538224352566101034
Armenia614051510
Italy268158561085334372455836466331
Spain45923171010717110102618612881038461788854676135266
Netherlands1711293634410251112
Ukraine631192121288101212121212121212101212712121212101212101010121012101212121212121212
Germany60222
Lithuania12835110711024322107282532732
Azerbaijan1061033
Belgium645941
Greece21515871237610381
Iceland201082
Moldova2531410476168108467371267745105712778857584810
Sweden4382582345104755851045186631071635410684555
Australia1251232
United Kingdom466283861274586636103533763856213644846726
Poland151466212187514311444104105373
Serbia31287381263657237581017221286127112712107188107
Estonia14143135528768312352810244

Spokespersons

The spokespersons announced the 12-point score from their respective country’s national jury in the following order:

[flag=nl] Netherlands – Jeangu Macrooy
[flag=sm] San Marino – Labiuse
[flag=mk] North Macedonia – Jana Burčeska
[flag=ml] Malta – Aidan
[flag=ua] Ukraine – Kateryna Pavlenko
[flag=al] Albania – Andri Xhahu
[flag=ee] Estonia – Tanel Padar
[flag=az] Azerbaijan – None
[flag=pt] Portugal – Pedro Tatanka
[flag=de] Germany – Barbara Schöneberger
[flag=be] Belgium – David Jeanmotte
[flag=no] Norway – Tix
[flag=il] Israel – Daniel Styopin
[flag=pl] Poland – Ida Nowakowska
[flag=gr] Greece – Stefania
[flag=md] Moldova – Elena Băncilă
[flag=bg] Bulgaria – Janan Dural
[flag=rs] Serbia – Dragana Kosjerina
[flag=is] Iceland – Árný Fjóla Ásmundsdóttir
[flag=cy] Cyprus – Loukas Hamatsos
[flag=lv] Latvia – Samanta Tīna
[flag=es] Spain – Nieves Álvarez
[flag=ch] Switzerland – Julie Berthollet
[flag=dk] Denmark – Tina Müller
[flag=fr] France – Élodie Gossuin
[flag=am] Armenia – Garik Papoyan
[flag=me] Montenegro – Andrijana Vešović
[flag=ro] Romania – None
[flag=ie] Ireland – Linda Martin
[flag=si] Slovenia – Lorella Flego
[flag=ge] Georgia – None
[flag=hr] Croatia – Ivan Dorian Molnar
[flag=lt] Lithuania – Vaidotas Valiukevičius
[flag=at] Austria – Philipp Hans
[flag=fi] Finland – Aksel
[flag=gb] United Kingdom – AJ Odudu
[flag=se] Sweden – Dotter
[flag=au] Australia – Courtney Act
[flag=cz] Czech Republic – Taťána Kuchařová
[flag=it] Italy – Carolina Di Domenico

Other countries

Eligibility for potential participation in the Eurovision Song Contest requires a national broadcaster with active EBU membership that would be able to broadcast the contest via the Eurovision network. The EBU issued an invitation to participate in the contest to all active members. Associate member Australia did not need an invitation for the 2022 contest, as it had previously been granted permission to participate at least until 2023.

Active EBU members

[flag=ad] Andorra – On 1 August 2020, during an interview on Eurovision fansite Wiwibloggs‘ podcast, the 2009 Andorran representative Susanne Georgi revealed that she had held a meeting with Prime Minister of Andorra Xavier Espot Zamora, during which they called for the country to make a return in 2022, having not returned for the previous year’s contest due to the continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic in Andorra. However, on 19 June 2021, the Andorran broadcaster Ràdio i Televisió d’Andorra (RTVA) stated that the principality would not return in 2022. Andorra last took part in 2009.

[flag=ba] Bosnia and Herzegovina – In June 2021, Bosnian broadcaster Radio and Television of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BHRT) stated that it was unlikely that the country would return to the contest in the upcoming years, unless sufficient funding to do so is secured. On 12 October 2021, BHRT confirmed that Bosnia and Herzegovina would not return in 2022. Bosnia and Herzegovina last took part in 2016.

[flag=tr] Turkey – In June 2021, it was confirmed by both the EBU and İbrahim Eren, the director general of Turkish national broadcaster Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT), that they were in talks about the country potentially returning to the contest in 2022. However, Turkey did not appear on the final list of participants released by the EBU. Turkey last took part in 2012.

Non-EBU members

[flag=by] Belarus – On 28 May 2021, the EBU Executive Board agreed to suspend the membership of Belarusian broadcaster BTRC as a result of its use by the Belarusian government as a propaganda tool. The broadcaster was given two weeks to respond before the suspension came into effect, but did not do so publicly. BTRC was expelled from the EBU on 1 July for a period of three years, therefore losing the rights to broadcast and participate in any Eurovision event until 1 July 2024; the broadcaster subsequently released a statement affirming that they would not be supporting Belarus‘ participation in upcoming years, including 2022. Belarus last took part in 2019, having intended to compete in the cancelled 2020 contest and having been disqualified from the 2021 contest.

[flag=li] Liechtenstein – Liechtensteiner broadcaster 1 FL TV did not debut in the 2022 contest due to the high costs of participation. The broadcaster had attempted to become an EBU member in the past but halted its plans when its director, Peter Kölbel, unexpectedly died. It would also need the backing of the Liechtenstein government to be able to carry the cost of becoming an EBU member and paying the participation fee for the contest.

[flag=ru] Russia – Despite initially appearing on the list of participants, on 25 February 2022, following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and increasing protests from other participating countries, the EBU announced that Russia was excluded from the 2022 contest.[133] The following day, all EBU members from Russia, including VGTRK and Channel One, announced their withdrawal from the union; however, the EBU itself had yet to receive a confirmation. On 1 March, a further statement from the EBU announced that it had suspended its Russian members from its governance structures.[165] On 26 May, the EBU made effective the suspension of its Russian members, causing Russia to indefinitely lose broadcasting and participation rights for future Eurovision events.

Incidents

Russo-Ukrainian crisis

Ukrainian artist replacement

Following the controversy surrounding the Ukrainian national selection in 2019, which led to the country withdrawing from the contest that year, a new rule was introduced starting from 2020 which bars artists who have performed in Russia since 2014 or have entered Crimea „in violation of the legislation of Ukraine“ from entering the selection. The 2022 Ukrainian national selection was won by Alina Pash with the song „Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors“. On 14 February 2022, two days after the selection, activist and video blogger Serhii Sternenko alleged that Pash had entered Crimea from Russian territory in 2015, and counterfeited her travel documentation with her team in order to take part in the selection. The Ukrainian broadcaster UA:PBC subsequently stated that they would request the Ukrainian State Border Guard Service to verify if the documentation is forged, and that Pash would not officially be the Ukrainian representative at the contest „until the verification and clarification of the facts is completed“. After it was discovered that a representative of Pash’s team had handed in falsified documentation to UA:PBC, on 16 February, Pash announced that she would withdraw her candidacy as the Ukrainian representative at the contest. Runner-up of the selection, Kalush Orchestra with the song „Stefania“, were given an offer to represent Ukraine in Pash’s place on 17 February. On 22 February, UA:PBC confirmed that Kalush Orchestra had accepted the offer.

Exclusion of Russia

In the wake of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, which began on 24 February, UA:PBC appealed to suspend Russian EBU member broadcasters VGTRK and Channel One from the union and to exclude Russia from competing in the contest. The appeal alleged that since the beginning of the Russian military intervention in Ukraine in 2014, VGTRK and Channel One have been a mouthpiece for the Russian government and a key tool of political propaganda financed from the Russian state budget. The EBU initially stated that Russia as well as Ukraine would still be allowed to participate in the contest, citing the non-political nature of the event.

Several broadcasters expressed their concern at the decision and issued statements calling for the removal of Russia from the contest. In addition to Ukraine’s UA:PBC, nine other countries‘ broadcasters requested the EBU to change the decision: Denmark’s DR, Estonia’s ERR, Finland’s Yle, Iceland’s RÚV, Lithuania’s LRT, the Netherlands‘ AVROTROS, Norway’s NRK, Poland’s TVP and Sweden’s SVT. Yle also stated that they would withdraw their participation if Russia were not excluded from the contest. This was followed by a similar announcement from ERR. Latvian representatives Citi Zēni also urged the EBU to reconsider Russian participation. On 25 February 2022, the EBU announced that Russia would not compete at the contest, stating that „in light of the unprecedented crisis in Ukraine, the inclusion of a Russian entry in this year’s Contest would bring the competition into disrepute.“ The following day, all EBU members from Russia, including VGTRK and Channel One, announced their withdrawal from the union, according to a statement released by Russian state media. Russia had not publicly announced an artist or song before being excluded.

Ukrainian preparations

Following the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, UA:PBC and Kalush Orchestra had yet to formally comment on whether their participation in the contest would continue. On 14 March 2022, Claudio Fasulo and Simona Martorelli, executive producers of the 2022 contest, confirmed that Ukraine would still be competing; this was later reaffirmed by UA:PBC on 19 March via a post on its social media pages. They added that work would commence on the Ukrainian ‚live-on-tape‘ backup performance, which was planned to be recorded in Lviv and used in the event that the delegation cannot travel to Turin, however, the delegation was later exempted from the requirement to do so. On 2 April, UA:PBC confirmed that Kalush Orchestra and the rest of the delegation was given permission to travel to Turin for the contest, adding that the group would also take part in promotional events across Europe to raise donations for war relief efforts.

Rehearsal stage malfunction

The ‚kinetic sun‘ component of the stage in its static form.

During the first day of rehearsals in Turin on 30 April 2022, Italian newspapers La Repubblica and La Stampa reported technical difficulties with the ‚kinetic sun‘ component of the stage, with its arches not being able to move as freely as expected. The papers also reported that the malfunction could not be completely fixed in time for the live shows. Several delegations, among them those from Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland and Lithuania, were forced to revise their staging plans, having been informed of the malfunction a few days prior. La Stampa later reported the following day that a compromise was reached, in which the arches would stay static for the competing entries‘ performances, while for the opening and interval acts, the arches would be permitted to move dynamically. This was later confirmed by the EBU in a statement issued to Danish broadcaster DR on 2 May.

Macedonian flag incident

During the „Turquoise Carpet“ event on 8 May 2022, the Macedonian representative Andrea was seen throwing the Macedonian flag on the ground before posing for the press. The Macedonian broadcaster MRT later published a statement condemning her action, describing it as a „desecration of a national symbol, which is punishable by Macedonian law“. In the same statement, the broadcaster stated that they were considering withdrawing Andrea from the contest and that people in the delegation that are deemed responsible for the incident would be sanctioned. Andrea herself issued an apology later that day. MRT later stated on 11 May that they would take all disciplinary measures after the delegation returns from Turin, while also raising the possibility that they would not return for the 2023 contest, because of the negative publicity caused by the incident.

Attempted cyber attacks

On 11 May 2022, pro-Russian hacker group Killnet carried out an attack on numerous Italian institutional websites, including those of the Ministry of Defense, the Senate, the National Health Institute, and the Automobile Club d’Italia. The official website of the Eurovision Song Contest was later revealed to be among those that were targeted, in addition to the platform on which the contest’s voting system is based. Additional attacks were reported to have taken place during the first semi-final and the final. The attacks were ultimately unsuccessful, and there were no disruptions to either the website or the voting platform.

Jury vote irregularities

In a statement released during the broadcast of the final, the EBU revealed that during the jury show of the second semi-final on 11 May 2022, six national juries, namely those of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania and San Marino, were found to have had irregular voting patterns. As a result, these six countries were given substitute aggregated jury results for the second semi-final and the final based on countries with similar voting patterns, as determined by the pots that the countries were put into for the semi-final allocation draw in January. The Flemish broadcaster VRT later reported that the juries of the countries involved had made agreements to vote for each other.

During the announcement of the jury votes in the final, Azerbaijan, Romania and Georgia had their votes announced by Martin Österdahl, the contest’s executive supervisor. This was stated to have been due to technical difficulties in establishing connection with those countries‘ designated spokespersons. The spokespersons who would have announced them were Narmin Salmanova, Eda Marcus and Helen Kalandadze respectively.[150] A press release from the Romanian broadcaster TVR on 20 May revealed that the reason for Österdahl’s intervention on behalf of the Romanian spokesperson was due to TVR’s refusal to accept the aggregate scores calculated by the EBU.

The day after the final, TVR accused the EBU of „changing the rules“ and requested further clarification of the incident. In their original decision, the Romanian jury awarded 12 points to Moldova. The Georgian broadcaster GPB and the Azerbaijani broadcaster İTV also requested a more detailed statement on the jury vote issues, disclosing that their juries‘ 12 points were originally awarded to Ukraine. The Montenegrin broadcaster RTCG and the Polish broadcaster TVP also requested more clarification on the issue. In addition, TVR and İTV claimed that no technical difficulties had occurred during the jury voting segment of the final.

On 19 May 2022, the EBU released the full breakdown of the nullified jury votes from the second semi-final. RTCG, TVR, and the Sammarinese broadcaster SMRTV denied any wrongdoing on their part, with the former two claiming that other irregular voting patterns existed but were not detected. TVR also threatened to withdraw from the contest for 2023 and future editions, while also planning to take legal action against the EBU in response.

Gallery

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