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Stage design revealed, eyes on Kyiv before Host City Insignia Exchange

31 January 2017 at 10:30 CET
Photo: Timur Miroshnychenko
Today marks a major milestone in the lead up to the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest as Stockholm will officially handover the Host City Insignia to Kyiv. The Semi-Final Allocation Draw will also take place during the ceremony which will be held at 11:00 CET this morning in the Column Hall of Kyiv's City State Administration. The programme will be hosted by popular television Timur Miroshnychenko and will be streamed internationally on YouTube. Meanwhile, the stage design for the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest has been revealed!

Mrs Eva-Louise Erlandsson Slorach, President of the City Council in Stockholm, will formally hand over the Host City Insignia to Kyiv City Mayor Vitaliy Klychko this morning. Jamala, winner of the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest and Ruslana, Ukraine's winner from 2004, will also appear during the ceremony. 

The draw: How it works

The first part of the draw will determine on which semi-final each of the six pre-qualified countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom and host country Ukraine) will broadcast and vote. At the request of German broadcaster ARD, and following approval from the Reference Group, the governing body of the Eurovision Song Contest, Germany will broadcast and vote in the Second Semi-Final on Thursday 11th May.

The second draw will then decide in which semi-final each of the other participating countries will perform. At the request of Swiss broadcaster SRF and approved by the Reference Group, Switzerland will participate in the Second Semi-Final which will have 19 participants and the First Semi-Final 18 participants.

As in previous years, the exact running order will be determined by the producers of the show. From each Semi-Final, ten countries will proceed to the Grand Final on 13th May, joining the six pre-qualified countries. In total, 26 countries will be represented in the Grand Final.

The allocation draw pots

The 37 Semi-Finalists have been allocated into six pots, based on historical voting patterns as calculated by the contest's official televoting partner Digame. Drawing from different pots helps to reduce the chance of so-called neighbourly voting and increases suspense in the Semi-Finals. Read more about the allocation draw pots for 2017.

Celebrate Diversity

Celebrate Diversity is the central message for this year’s event and is complimented by a creative logo design based around a traditional Ukrainian bead necklace known as Namysto. Both the slogan and artwork of the event give an insight into Ukrainian culture and a hint at what might be to come when fans visit the city in May.

The stage is set

Host Broadcaster UA:PBC and the Reference Group, the governing body of the Eurovision Song Contest, have both been candid in stating that there have been challenges with organising the forthcoming competition in Ukraine. On Monday the Reference Group met again and received an update on how the plans were proceeding. Today we can give you a sneak peek of the stage design for Kyiv 2017. The concept has a circular footprint, which exemplifies the theme for the contest this year; celebrating diversity.

The stage was created by Florian Wieder, who created the concepts for three previous contests. The design for 2017 symbolises Ukraine being the centre of Europe in May and allows fans to be as close to the performers as possible. The dynamic stage design, which incorporates multiple media surfaces, will create a unique setting for each act, allowing every performer to shine on the night.

Further announcements about the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 will be made soon. Don't forget to check out the official social media channels of the Eurovision Song Contest: