BASEL, Switzerland — Competition in the 69th Eurovision Song Contest kicks off Tuesday, with performers from 15 countries battling it out in Basel, Switzerland during the first of two semifinals of the pan-continental music extravaganza.

The Eurovision Song Contest 2025's grand final will take place on Saturday, May 17, and kick off from 8pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. The singing competition will run for four hours and finish at midnight.

The city at the crossroads of France, Germany and Switzerland gears up amid global tensions over diversity and inclusion.

The UK is set to challenge the staggering 80/1 odds for Eurovision 2025, with Sweden tipped as the frontrunner by bookies. In the run-up to the Eurovision grand final in Basel, Sweden has been pegged at 10/11 odds to clinch the title this year.

“I support the call for Israel’s exclusion from the Eurovision Song Contest,” Nemo, a Swiss artist who won last year’s competition, told the Huffington Post. “Israel’s actions are fundamentally at odds with the values that Eurovision claims to uphold — peace, unity, and respect for human rights.”

“A large no-fly zone for drones is in effect across the entire city center and throughout the cantons of Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landschaft during the Eurovision Song Contest,” the police announced. This comes just two days after 150 pro-Palestinian protesters attempted to interrupt the Eurovision delegation parade on Sunday.

Here are the latest odds for the favourite to win the Eurovision Song Contest 2025. The Eurovision Song Contest is back in 2025 as we head to Basel, Switzerland with hosts Hazel Brugger, Michelle Hunziker and Sandra Studer, as they guide us and the participants through the exciting ceremony.

It’s Eurovision week, with a number of Irish mega fans making their way to Basel ahead of the competition. Norwegian singer-songwriter Emmy will perform in the second semi-final of the contest with her song,