The first Semi-Final of the delivered an emotional and energetic opening night in Vienna, as 15 countries competed for 10 places in Saturday’s Grand Final. Hosted at the Wiener Stadthalle by Victoria Swarovski and Michael Ostrowski, the show mixed powerful vocals, theatrical staging and several unexpected moments that immediately set the tone for this year’s contest.
Among the standout performances of the night were Sweden’s futuristic pop entry, Finland’s explosive rock-inspired staging, Greece’s atmospheric performance and Israel’s emotionally charged ballad. The arena audience in Vienna responded loudly throughout the evening, especially during the high-energy dance numbers and dramatic final performances.
The 10 qualifiers from Semi-Final 1
The countries that qualified for the Grand Final are:
- Greece — Akylas — “Ferto”
- Sweden — Felicia — “My System”
- Croatia — Lelek — “Andromeda”
- Finland — Linda Lampenius & Pete Parkkonen — “Liekinheitin”
- Israel — Noam Bettan — “Michelle”
- Belgium — Essyla — “Dancing on the Ice”
- Lithuania — Lion Ceccah — “Sólo quiero más”
- Poland — Alicja — “Pray”
- Serbia — Lavina — “Kraj mene”
- Moldova — Satoshi — “Viva, Moldova!”
Unfortunately, the journey ended for Portugal, Georgia, Montenegro, Estonia and San Marino, who did not qualify for the Grand Final.
The atmosphere in Vienna felt especially celebratory this year as the contest marks the 70th edition of Eurovision. The opening of the show featured a large choir performance, while the interval acts leaned into Austria’s humor and musical identity. Fans online immediately began debating potential winners, with Sweden, Finland, Greece and Israel emerging as some of the early favourites after the first live show.
The second Semi-Final will take place on Thursday night, completing the lineup for the Grand Final on 16 May.
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