Eurovision 2026 First Semifinal Begins in Vienna
The first semifinal of the 70th Eurovision Song Contest opens Tuesday in Vienna with artists from 35 countries competing. Five nations are boycotting over Israel's participation. Noam Bettan advanced through a dress rehearsal on May 11 after walking the turquoise carpet the previous day.
Al JazeeraThe first semifinal of the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 begins Tuesday at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna, the first semifinal of the 70th edition featuring artists from 35 countries. The top 10 acts from the first semifinal advance to the grand final.
The second semifinal is on Thursday. The Eurovision Song Contest 2026 culminates with a Grand Final in Vienna on Saturday, May 16, 2026. The United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy automatically qualify for the final.
Austria automatically qualifies for the final as the host country and 2025 winner. Noam Bettan is representing Israel at the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Michelle”. He performed during a dress rehearsal for the first semi-final at Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna on May 11, 2026.
Bettan walked on the Turquoise Carpet in Vienna on Sunday, May 10, 2026. Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Iceland are boycotting the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest. Five countries announced in December 2025 that they would not participate in the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest.
The Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain, Iceland and Ireland announced their boycott on December 4, 2025. Iceland’s broadcaster RUV announced its boycott on December 10, 2025. Israel came second in the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest.
Austria won the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest with the song Wasted Love performed by JJ. Israel first participated in Eurovision in 1973 and hosted in Tel Aviv in 2019. On the turquoise carpet on May 10, 2026 in Vienna, Senhit from San Marino performed with Boy George.
Look Mum No Computer from the United Kingdom walked on the turquoise carpet on May 10, 2026 in Vienna. Tamara Zivkovic from Montenegro walked on the turquoise carpet on May 10, 2026 in Vienna. Sarah Engels from Germany walked on the turquoise carpet on May 10, 2026 in Vienna.
Finland is the bookmakers’ favorite with the song “Liekinheitin” (“Flamethrower”) by Linda Lampenius and Pete Parkkonen. Greece’s Akylas is performing the track “Ferto” (“Bring It”). Portuguese quintet Bandidos do Cante is performing “Rosa”.
Senhit is performing “Superstar” featuring Boy George. Russia was expelled from Eurovision in 2022. The European Broadcasting Union toughened voting rules by halving the number of votes per person to 10 and tightening safeguards against suspicious voting.
““We’ll see demonstrations, but we’ll also see a lot of colorful events going on which will really represent what Eurovision is about, which is bringing Europeans together.” — Dean Vuletic, author of “Postwar Europe and the Eurovision Song Contest” The contest opened with tightened security in Vienna as artists from 35 countries took to the stage in the first semifinal.”
Key Facts
Story Timeline
8 events- May 12, 10:03 AM ET
1 new source added: The Guardian
1 sourceThe Guardian - 2022
Russia expelled from Eurovision
1 sourceAP - December 4, 2025
Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain, Iceland and Ireland announce boycott
2 sourcesAP · Al Jazeera - December 10, 2025
Iceland’s broadcaster RUV announces boycott
1 sourceAl Jazeera - May 10, 2026
Artists including Noam Bettan, Senhit with Boy George, Look Mum No Computer, Tamara Zivkovic and Sarah Engels walk turquoise carpet in Vienna
2 sourcesAP · Jerusalem Post - May 11, 2026
Noam Bettan performs dress rehearsal at Wiener Stadthalle
2 sourcesJerusalem Post · AP - May 12, 2026
First semifinal begins in Vienna
3 sourcesAP · Al Jazeera · unattributed facts - May 16, 2026
Grand Final scheduled in Vienna
2 sourcesAP · Al Jazeera
Potential Impact
- 01
Reduced number of participating countries to 35, altering semifinal competition structure
- 02
Increased security measures and planned pro-Palestinian demonstrations in Vienna during contest week
- 03
Heightened political scrutiny of European Broadcasting Union decision-making on participant eligibility
- 04
Potential effect on viewer numbers and broadcaster relations across Europe
Transparency Panel
Related Stories
The GuardianWHO Chief Visits DRC as Ebola Death Rate Reaches 30-50%
World Health Organization director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus arrived in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to support containment of a new Ebola outbreak. The agency revised the death rate to 30-50% based on confirmed cases and recorded 10 confirmed and 223 suspected d…
westernjournal.comGreek National Charged in UK With Aiding Iran-Linked Intelligence Service
A 46-year-old Greek man living in Germany was charged under the UK National Security Act with assisting an intelligence service believed to be Iran by targeting a journalist at Iran International.
physicianonfire.comBilt Rewards reports $1 billion revenue target for 2026
Bilt Rewards CEO Ankur Jain said the company's flagship credit card accounts for less than 11 percent of revenue. The firm now processes more than $100 billion in annual housing spend across one in four U.S. apartment buildings.