Sweden wins 67th Eurovision Song Contest as Europe is 'United By Music'
Swedish EBU Member SVT has won the 67th Eurovision Song Contest with the song 'Tattoo' performed by Loreen. Sweden now has 7 victories in the Eurovision Song Contest equalling Ireland’s record set in 1996.
Loreen is only the second artist to win the Eurovision Song Contest twice, and the only female artist, following her victory in 2012 with Euphoria.
26 countries took part in the Grand Final of the world’s largest live music event, hosted by EBU Member, BBC, on Saturday 13 May in Liverpool.
The winning song took the prize with 583 points. In second place was Finland with 526 points, represented by Käärijä, singing Cha, Cha, Cha. Third place went to Israel, with Noa Kirel singing Unicorn, with 362 points.
Following the performances of the 26 Grand Finalists, the results of the juries in the 37 participating nations who voted on Friday’s dress rehearsal were given out leaving Sweden in the lead.
This was followed by a sequence where viewers’ televotes for each competing country were combined and added to the scoreboard resulting in an exciting finale that saw Sweden take the trophy.
An estimated audience of over 160 million will have seen this year's Contest which was broadcast live in the 37 participating countries and online on TikTok and YouTube. The 26 finalists performed live in front of an audience of over 6,000 inside the Liverpool Arena.
The roll-call of Grand Finalists was: Albania (RTSH); Armenia (AMPTV); Australia (SBS); Austria (ORF); Belgium (VRT); Croatia (HRT); Cyprus (CyBC); Czechia (CT); Estonia (ERR); France (FTV); Finland (Yle); Germany (ARD, NDR); Israel (KAN); Italy (RAI); Lithuania (LRT); Moldova (TRM); Norway (NRK); Poland (TVP); Portugal (RTVE); Serbia (RTS); Slovenia (RTVSLO); Spain (RTVE); Sweden (SVT); Switzerland (SRG/SSR); Ukraine (UA:PBC) and United Kingdom (BBC).
Martin Österdahl, the EBU's Executive Supervisor of the Eurovision Song Contest, said: "We were determined that this year’s Contest would honour Ukraine’s 2022 victory and the close collaboration between the BBC and UA:PBC ensured Ukrainian culture was front and centre of the 2023 event. We are incredibly grateful to these broadcasters for their incredible work and commitment to creating a a truly historic event.
“We congratulate Loreen on her win and a superb performance of ‘Tattoo’ that will go down in Eurovision history! Every artist made sure Europe was truly United by Music. We had the warmest welcome we could have hoped for from the City of Liverpool. Everyone who came here to work on or enjoy this year’s Contest will take away the most incredible memories.”
The Grand Final also saw world class performances from last year’s winners who opened the show with their winner “Stefania” followed by a staggering Flag Parade featuring former Ukrainian Eurovision acts and all 26 competing artists.
2022 United Kingdom entry, Sam Ryder - with the surprise appearance of Roger Taylor from mega-band Queen on drums – entertained audiences before the exciting voting began. A plethora of iconic past Contest winners and performers including Netta, Israel’s winner in 2018; Daði Freyr, who represented Iceland in 2021; Cornelia Jakobs, the Swedish 2022 entry; Sonia (Liverpool’s very own Song Contest finalist in 1993); also appeared singing hits made famous by Liverpool artists. The finale was performed by Duncan Laurence who won for the Netherlands in 2019. His stirring rendition of Liverpool anthem, You’ll Never Walk Alone, was a fitting tribute to a Contest that was held on behalf of Ukraine.
The Eurovision Song Contest is a complex and technically challenging production involving a vast number of resources and people. It’s powered by 1 megawatt of UPS power and 5,000 hours of labour. There are 950 square metres of staging on the main stage and 500 square metres of staging for the Green Room. These are just a few examples of what goes into producing the world’s biggest live music competition!
The 67th Eurovision Song Contest was a co-production between the EBU and BBC. The competition is being hosted by the BBC in the UK on behalf of Ukraine following Kalush Orchestra’s win for their country in Turin in May 2022.
The full list and profiles of participants, with photos, quotes and behind-the-scenes stories can be found on the official website, Eurovision.tv.