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#100DaysToEurovision: Everything we know so far! 🇮🇹

03 February 2022 at 09:00 CET
It’s the final countdown… with only 100 days to go until the Grand Final of the 66th Eurovision Song Contest.

To mark the milestone we’re inviting you to share the ONE thing that made you fall in love with the Eurovision Song Contest across our official Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and Facebook channels using: #100DaysToEurovision.

Throughout today we’ll share messages across our official channel and to mark the 100 days we’ve launched the official Eurovision Song Contest Spotify account where you can find all the songs chosen so far this year, listen to all the ESC winners and check out the Essential Eurovision tracks every fan should know. More playlists will be added soon.

#100DaysToEurovision

With 100 days to go, here’s a round-up of what we know so far about the Host City, venue, theme (brand, set and stage), hosts, participants, and tickets.

The 66th Eurovision Song Contest will broadcast live from Turin, Italy:

  • Tuesday 10 May, 21:00 CEST: Eurovision Song Contest, First Semi-Final
  • Thursday 12 May, 21:00 CEST: Eurovision Song Contest, Second Semi-Final
  • Saturday 14 May, 21:00 CEST: Eurovision Song Contest, Grand Final
Fabio Fistarol

Host City: Turin

After months of speculation and a hugely competitive selection process that saw 17 individual bids, the honour of hosting the 66th Eurovision Song Contest was won by Turin.

Turin is surrounded by The Alps Fabio Fistarol

The capital of Piedmont will be the third Italian city to host the event after Naples (1965) and Rome (1991), thanks to Måneskin’s magnificent victory in Rotterdam the previous year.

Located at the foot of the Alps, our destination is famed for its galleries and museums, parks and piazzas, palaces and castles, as well as the superb examples of Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo, Neoclassical, and Art Nouveau architecture.

But as well as its historical significance, the city’s impact on modern culture cannot be overstated: Turin is the home of Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino (FIAT); the ‘Derby della Mole’ between Juventus and Torino FC; the Holy Shroud; and is the birthplace of Italian cinema.

Turin EBU / Stijn Smulders

If you’re looking to get your teeth into something other than a ‘Spaghetti Western’, you’ll soon discover Italy is much more than the ‘land of pizza and Sambuca’.

In fact, the wider Piedmont region alone is known for its Montebore, Castelmagno and Robiola di Roccaverano cheeses, Salsiccia di Bra (sausage), Piedmontese beef, Grissini breadsticks, Barolo wine, vermouth, white truffles, hazelnuts and, of course, Nutella.

Thankfully, Turin provides plenty of opportunities to dance off those calories; in the epicentre of Italian electronica you are never far from a dance floor or live venue.

Whether you’re looking for the next Måneskin in an underground bar, wanting to unwind with cocktails and jazz, or hoping to ride those Italo-disco vibes late into the evening, there’s a rich musical heritage to explore.

Venue: PalaOlimpico

PalaOlimpico was designed and built according to the vision of Japanese architect Arata Isozaki for the 2006 Torino Winter Olympic Games.

PalaOlimpico

The facility is widely recognised as the largest, most modern, most functional indoor arena facility in Italy.

Over the years the PalaOlimpico has hosted many international events, including gigs from the likes of Madonna, Lady Gaga, Ennio Morricone, Depeche Mode and Shakira, as well as various sporting events and entertainment spectaculars such as Cirque du Soleil.

Theme: The Sound of Beauty

The 66th Eurovision Song Contest’s theme is a visual representation of The Sound of Beauty. In order to represent sound and its visual (and beautiful) properties, the design is based on the symmetrical structure and patterns of cymatics – the study of sound wave phenomena.

📺 Watch: The Sound of Beauty – The Story Behind The Theme Art

The term ‘cymatic’ was coined in the 1960s by Hans Jenny, a Swiss scientist and philosopher, derived from the ancient Greek word κῦμα (kyma), which means 'wave’. His experiments showed that if fine powders were placed on a sheet of metal and acoustic wave vibrations were applied to them, these particles were organised into specific patterns.

The Italian Garden (o ‘Giardini all’Italiana’) was one of the main inspirations for the set design (more on that later…), and it was noticeable that these gardens have a structure similarly present in cymatics. Both are based on symmetry, axial geometry and seem to indicate the principle of an idea of order over nature.

The cymatics in the theme-art visually hint towards both the sun and a cosmic portal that can be opened on the idea of the sound of beauty… this will play an integral part in the stage and wider set designs, which will be revealed soon.

Show Hosts: Laura Pausini, Alessandro Catellan and Mika

Hosts Laura, Alessandro and Mika were announced during the Wednesday night show of the 2022 Sanremo Music Festival, broadcast live on Rai.

Eurovision 2022 Hosts: (left to right) Mika, Laura Pausini and Alessandro Cattelan 🇮🇹 Giulio Rustichelli

Laura Pausini is, right now, possibly the most highly regarded Italian recording artist in the world. In 2021, she won four Latin Grammys, a Grammy Award, a Golden Globe, and received a historic Oscars nod (for the first ever song sung entirely in Italian to be nominated) before performing Io sì (Seen) at the 93rd Academy Awards.

Joining Laura is Alessandro Cattelan; this year celebrating 20 years of presenting, there are few more recognisable faces on Italian television.

As the creator and host of late shows, entertainment evenings and brand new formats, Alessandro is probably best known for hosting Total Request Live, Le Iene, and The X Factor (Italy).

And completing the lineup is the incredible Mika.

Since his debut single Grace Kelly (2007), the Lebanese-British singer-songwriter has enjoyed a career without artistic barriers set by genre, geography or societal expectations.

Participating Countries and Semi-Finals

Public broadcasters from 41 countries will take part in the Eurovision Song Contest when it returns to our screens in May.

During the Semi-Final Allocation Draw, countries were allocated which Semi-Final they will perform and/or vote in:

📺 Watch: Semi-Final Allocation Draw and Host City Insignia Ceremony

First Semi-Final

Tuesday 10 May, 21:00 CET

First Half of Show

  • 🇦🇱 Albania – RTSH
  • 🇧🇬 Bulgaria – BNT
  • 🇱🇻 Latvia – LTV
  • 🇱🇹 Lithuania – LRT
  • 🇲🇩 Moldova – TRM
  • 🇳🇱 Netherlands – AVROTROS
  • 🇸🇮 Slovenia – RTVSLO
  • 🇨🇭 Switzerland – SRG / SSR
  • 🇺🇦 Ukraine – UA:PBC

Second Half of Show

  • 🇦🇲 Armenia – AMPTV
  • 🇦🇹 Austria – ORF
  • 🇭🇷 Croatia – HRT
  • 🇩🇰 Denmark – DR
  • 🇬🇷 Greece – ERT
  • 🇮🇸 Iceland – RÚV
  • 🇳🇴 Norway – NRK
  • 🇷🇺 Russia – RTR
  • 🇵🇹 Portugal – RTP

'Big 5' countries voting during First Semi-Final:

  • 🇮🇹 Italy – Rai (Hosts)
  • 🇫🇷 France – FT

Second Semi-Final

Thursday 12 May, 21:00 CET

First Half of Show

  • 🇦🇺 Australia – SBS
  • 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan – İctimai TV
  • 🇨🇾 Cyprus – CyBC
  • 🇫🇮 Finland – YLE
  • 🇬🇪 Georgia – GPB
  • 🇮🇱 Israel – IPBC/Kan
  • 🇲🇹 Malta – PBS
  • 🇸🇲 San Marino – RTV
  • 🇷🇸 Serbia – RTS

Second Half of Show

  • 🇧🇪 Belgium – RTBF
  • 🇨🇿 Czech Republic ČT
  • 🇪🇪 Estonia – ERR
  • 🇮🇪 Ireland – RTÉ
  • 🇲🇪 Montenegro – RTCG
  • 🇲🇰 North Macedonia – MKRTV
  • 🇵🇱 Poland – TVP
  • 🇷🇴 Romania – TVR
  • 🇸🇪 Sweden – SVT

'Big 5' countries voting during Second Semi-Final:

  • 🇩🇪 Germany – ARD/NDR
  • 🇪🇸 Spain – RTVE
  • 🇬🇧 United Kingdom – BBC

The running orders will be decided by show producers at a later date.

Participating artists and songs have started being announced by the competing broadcasters, and you can find an up-to-date list on our participants page AND find out when other acts are likely to be announced via the Eurovision 2022 National Selections Calendar.

📺 Watch: Eurovision The Month: January 2022

Tickets

Information about tickets will be revealed very soon; we encourage fans to be patient and to only buy tickets through the official ticketing partner’s website when it’s announced on Eurovision.tv in the coming weeks.

Fans planning to attend the Contest are advised to keep a close eye on existing and potential travel restrictions between their home country and the Host City.

Don’t forget to share your memory of the ONE thing that made you fall in love with Eurovision across the official Eurovision Song Contest YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and Facebook channels.