BASEL, Switzerland (AP) 鈥� The world鈥檚 largest live music event has reached its glitter-drenched conclusion with the grand final on Saturday of the , a celebration of over Israel鈥檚 participation.
A trio singing for Sweden about the joys of saunas and a classically trained Austrian countertenor are among those tipped to take the microphone-shaped Eurovision trophy at the contest in .
But at the ever-unpredictable event, the prize could just as easily go to powerful singers from France, the Netherlands or Finland 鈥� or even an Estonian who sings about Italian coffee. The final kicks off at 9 p.m. local time.
Sweden's sauna song is a favorite
Bookmakers say the favorite is with their ode to sauna culture 鈥淏ara Bada Bastu,鈥� followed by Austrian singer JJ鈥檚 pop-opera song 鈥淲asted Love.鈥�
French chanteuse Louane has risen up the odds with 鈥渕aman,鈥� as has Dutch singer Claude with soulful ballad 鈥淐鈥檈st La Vie鈥� and Finland鈥檚 Erika Vikman with the innuendo-laden 鈥淚ch Komme.鈥� is also a contender with his highly caffeinated dance-pop song 鈥淓spresso Macchiato.鈥�
has won many fans with her anthemic 鈥淣ew Day Will Rise,鈥� but also faced protests from pro-Palestinian demonstrators calling for Israel to be kicked out of the contest over its conduct of the .
Acts from 26 countries 鈥� trimmed from 37 entrants through 鈥� will perform to some for the continent鈥檚 pop crown. No smoke machine, jet of flame or dizzying light display has been spared by musicians who have 3 minutes to win the viewers who, along with national juries of music professionals, pick the winner.
The live show is also set to feature a guest performance by 鈥� who won last year鈥檚 contest in Sweden 鈥� and a face-off between two fan favorites: Baby Lasagna of Croatia, the 2024 runner up with 鈥淩im Tim Tagi Dim,鈥� and Finland鈥檚 K盲盲rij盲, whose rap-pop party anthem 鈥淐ha Cha Cha鈥� came second in 2023.
There are also rumors of an appearance by Celine Dion. Before she was a global star, the Canadian chanteuse won Eurovision in 1988, competing for Switzerland. She sent a video message to one of the semifinals, where three singers performed her winning song, 鈥淣e partez pas sans moi鈥� (Don鈥檛 Leave Without Me).
An eclectic competition
Dean Vuletic, an expert on the history of Eurovision, said the competition has become more diverse over the years, both musically and linguistically. There are songs in 20 languages this year, including Ukrainian, Icelandic, Albanian, Latvian and Maltese.
鈥淚n the past it was about having a catchy, innocuous pop song, usually in English,鈥� he said. But in the past decade 鈥渨e鈥檝e seen songs become much more socially and politically engaged, songs that present the audience with some sort of meaning."
鈥淚n recent years the formulaic approach to a Eurovision entry hasn鈥檛 succeeded," he added. "An entry needs to be memorable and it needs to be authentic in order to succeed these days.鈥�
Gaza war clouds the contest
This year鈥檚 contest has been roiled for a second year by disputes over Israel鈥檚 participation. Dozens of former participants, including Switzerland's Nemo, have called for Israel to be excluded.
Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel protests have both taken place in Basel, though on a much smaller scale than at last year鈥檚 event in Sweden, where tensions spilled over backstage and Dutch competitor Joost Klein was expelled over an alleged altercation with a crew member.
A pro-Palestinian demonstration is planned for Saturday evening in central Basel, about 3 kilometers (2 miles) from the St. Jakobshalle arena contest venue.
A group of Israel supporters gathered in Basel鈥檚 cathedral square on Saturday to root for Raphael and to show that 鈥淛ews belong in public spaces in Switzerland,鈥� said Zurich resident Rebecca Laes-Kushner.
She said 鈥渋t would be such a strong statement against antisemitism,鈥� if Raphael won.
鈥淭his is supposed to be about music, not about hate,鈥� she said.
The European Broadcasting Union or EBU, which runs Eurovision, tightened the contest鈥檚 code of conduct this year, calling on participants to respect Eurovision鈥檚 values of 鈥渦niversality, diversity, equality and inclusivity鈥� and its political neutrality.
Performers say the backstage vibe is more relaxed.
After a controversial ban in 2024 on flags, apart from national ones, being waved in the arena, this year audience members can bring Palestinian flags or any others, as long as they are legal under Swiss law. Performers, though, can only wave their own country鈥檚 flag.
Axel 脜hman, one third of favorites KAJ, acknowledged that it鈥檚 tough to keep Eurovision an unpolitical event.
鈥淭he world always seeps in in some sense,鈥� he told the AP. 鈥淏ut we鈥檙e here to represent Sweden and we have prepared for this for all our lives and want to make the best of our moment as artists in this huge and legendary competition.
"So our main focus is there, and the politics (we) try to leave that to the EBU and those actually making the decisions.鈥�
Eurovision director Martin Green told reporters that the organizers' goal was to 鈥漴e-establish a sense of unity, calm and togetherness this year in a difficult world.鈥�
鈥淎ll 37 delegations, in difficult times, have behaved impeccably,鈥� he said.
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Associated Press journalists Hilary Fox and Kwiyeon Ha contributed to this report.
Jill Lawless, The Associated Press
