Eurovision Semi-Final 1 Tips, Odds & Betting Preview

Eurovision Semi-Final (1) Info

Date: 13th May 2025

Time: 8 pm

Venue: St. Jakobshalle

Hosts: Hazel Brugger, Sandra Studer

Slogan: United By Music

Channel: RTÉ 1 and BBC 1

There will be 15 countries participating in Semi-Final 1 (determined by draw). The best 10 countries from Semi-Final 1 will qualify for the Grand Final.

Voting: Televoting from participating countries + the pre-qualified countries Germany, France and Italy + Online voting ("Rest of the world").

There will be fifteen countries competing in Semi-Final 1 of Eurovision 2025 on Tuesday Night, but only ten can advance to the grand finale at the weekend. The first Semi-Final has outright Eurovision favourites Sweden, who  are currently priced at 5/4, with the next shortest price countries being Belgium and the Netherlands at 20/1

Spain and Italy will perform on the night but have already qualified for the Saturday Night Final due to their status as one of the competition's “Big Five,” as do Switzerland, as hosts of the competition.

First Semi-Final, Tuesday 13 May 2025

1. Iceland: VÆB – RÓA

2. Poland: Justyna Steczkowska – GAJA

3. Slovenia: Klemen – How Much Time Do We Have Left

4. Estonia: Tommy Cash – Espresso Macchiato

Spain: Melody – ESA DIVA

5. Ukraine: Ziferblat – Bird of Pray

6. Sweden: KAJ – Bara Bada Bastu

7. Portugal: NAPA – Deslocado

8. Norway: Kyle Alessandro – Lighter

9. Belgium: Red Sebastian – Strobe Lights

Italy: Lucio Corsi – Volevo Essere Un Duro

10. Azerbaijan: Mamagama - Run With U

11. San Marino: Gabry Ponte – Tutta L’Italia

12. Albania: Shkodra Elektronike – Zjerm

13. Netherlands: Claude – C’est La Vie

14. Croatia: Marko Bošnjak – Poison Cake

Switzerland: Zoë Më – Voyage

15. Cyprus: Theo Evan – Shh

Eurovision Betting Semi-Final (1) Favourites

Sweden 1/5  (To Win) 1/500 (To Qualify)

The red-hot favourite for the first Eurovision semi-final is Sweden, which are currently also the outright favourite for the competition at odds of 5/4.

Sweden has participated in the contest 63 times, with their first appearance coming in 1958, where Brita Borg sang the song Augustin and finished 4th in the final out of 10 countries. They’re one of only 3 countries (The Netherlands and the UK too)  with Eurovision victories in 4 different decades, winning the contest in 1974, 1984, 1991, 1999, 2012, 2015, 2023. Their total of 7 victories puts them as the joint most successful country in the history of the competition, along with Ireland.

The Swedes look set to return with a bang this year with KAJ singing Bara Bada Bastu, which has already struck a chord with Eurovision fans, amassing 9.5 million views since being uploaded on the 8th of March last month.

Estonia 8/1 (To Win) 1/100 (To Qualify)

The second favourite for this semi-final 1 is Estonia with odds of 8/1, suggesting a 11.1% chance that Tommy Cash with the song Espresso Macchiato can win on Tuesday Night.

Estonia has been represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 29 times since making its debut in 1994, with its sole success coming in 2001 when  Tanel Padar, Dave Benton and 2XL won with the song Everybody.

Since the introduction of the semi-final round in 2004, Estonia has failed to reach the final on ten occasions and has reached the top ten five times, but their 11 Top-10 finishes is more than any Baltic Country.

Netherlands 10/1 (To Win) 1/500 (To Qualify)

Next in the betting for the first Eurovision semi-final is the Netherlands, who are joint fifth favourites in the outright betting with odds of 20/1

The Netherlands have partaken in the contest on 64 occasions with their first appearance coming in 1956 during the contest's first year and have only missed the event in 1985, 1991, 1995 and 2002.

Since their last success in 2019 when Duncan Laurence won with the song Arcade, it’s been a miserable few years, coming 23rd, 11th, failing to qualify in 2023 and being disqualified last year. This year, though, they’re expected to bounce back with a strong showing when Claude sings C’est la Vie,

Albania 12/1 (To Win) 1/50 (To Qualify)

The fourth favourite for Semi-Final 1 is Albania with odds of 12/1 to win the first semi-final and 1/50 to qualify for the final. They’re represented by Shkodra Elektronike with the song Zjerm.

Albania has made 20 appearances at the Eurovision Finals, with their first appearance coming in 2004. Their best result came in 2012 when they finished 5th in the final when Rona Nishliu sang Suus.

Ukraine 25/1 (To Win) 1/100  To Qualify)

The fifth favourite for semi-final 1 is Ukraine at odds of 25/1 to win and 1/100 to qualify for the final. They’re represented by Ziferblat with the song Bird of Pray. Ukraine are not expected to win the competition outright, though with odds of 80/1.

Ukraine has been represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 19 times since making its debut in 2003. They have won the competition 3 times in 2004, 2016 and most recently in 2022 with the song Stefania" performed by the group Kalush Orchestra. They can go level for Eurovision titles with the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Luxembourg and France with a win.

*Prices are subject to fluctuation.

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