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In its 67th year, it’s the longest-running annual international televised music competition and one of the world’s longest-running television programs; most famously, it gave us the iconic ABBA in 1974. Whether you’re a dedicated fan or a newcomer, here’s how to watch Eurovision in the US to see all the festivities live.
Since 1956, countries across Europe, the UK, and most recently Australia in 2015, have shown up to sing their hearts out. In 2023, it’s expected to bring in around 180 million viewers across the world, making it one of the most-watched shows on the planet. Despite this, Eurovision has only gained a US following in recent years.
The contest in 2022 brought in a mammoth 161 million viewers and the organizers were thrilled. “We couldn’t be happier to see the success of the Eurovision Song Contest across all our Members’ channels and on our digital platforms this year, ‘ said the ESC’s Executive Supervisor Martin Österdahl. “Once again, we have seen the enormous popularity of the Contest among young audiences, some of whom are discovering the event for the first time. The Eurovision Song Contest truly has global appeal demonstrated by the millions watching in every territory on earth and millions more interacting on social media.”
When is Eurovision 2023?
When is Eurovision 2023? The Eurovision 2023 will be broadcast from the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool in the UK over three days, on May 9, and 11. The grand finale on May 13, 2023. The live broadcast will air each day at 3 pm ET / 12 pm PST.
The first of two semi-finals kick off on Tuesday, May 9, 2023. The first round will feature Norway, Malta, Serbia, Latvia, Portugal, Ireland, Croatia, Switzerland, Israel, Moldova, Sweden, Azerbaijan, Czechia, Netherlands, and Finland.
The second semi-finals round will air on Thursday, May 11, 2023, and will see performances from Denmark, Armenia, Romania, Estonia, Belgium, Cyprus, Iceland, Greece, Poland, Slovenia, Georgia, San Marino, Austria, Albania, Lithuania, and Australia.
Hannah Waddingham. Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images
How to watch Eurovision in the US
How can one watch Eurovision in the US? Eurovision is available to stream for free on BBC iPlayer’s website, which has all the episodes from the first season. However, to watch the show in the US, Americans will need a VPN, a service that allows users to set their computer’s location to another country and access websites that would otherwise be restricted by location. The most popular VPNs out there are ExpressVPN, NordVPN and PureVPN—all of which offer a 30-day money-back guarantee. Read on for how to sign up for them to watch Eurovision in the US for free.
ExpressVPN is one of the most popular VPN services and the one we recommend above all others for a simple reason. The service—which allows users to set their location to more than 160 locations in 90 countries with unlimited bandwidth—offers a 30-day free trial and a money-back guarantee. After the free trial ends, Express VPN costs $6.67 per month for a 12-month plan + 3 extra months with their current Special Deal discount ($99.95 in total), $9.99 per month for a six-month plan ($59.95 in total) or $12.95 per month for a pay-by-the-month plan. Along with access to more than 160 locations, Express VPN—which takes about five minutes to set up—also promises lightning-quick connectivity, 24-hour live-chat support and allows users to connect to any device, from computers to phones to tablets. Of course, users can do more than watch international events and shows in the US with a VPN. Along with this event, VPNs also allow users to access international versions of Netflix, Disney Plus and HBO Max (which have different content than in the US) as well as stream international services like Hayu, which has access to programs like the Real Housewives, Below Deck, The Bachelor and hundreds of other reality TV shows.
Read on for step-by-step instructions on how to watch Eurovision in the US with ExpressVPN’s free trial.
- Sign up for ExpressVPN and create an account
- Log into your ExpressVPN account and click “Download” on the “Dashboard” or in “Set Up Your Devices”
- Once you’ve installed Express VPN, enter the “Activation Code” from the “Dashboard” or in “Set Up Your Devices”
- Once ExpressVPN is set up, change your location to “UK” by clicking the connect icon to read “Connected” and select the country in the “Smart Location” menu
- Visit the live programming page on BBC iPlayer‘s website
- Sign in or create an account and watch Eurovision in the US
Nord VPN is another popular VPN service recommended by YouTubers like PewDiePie, Casey Neistat and Philip DeFranco. The service—which offers a 30-day free trial and a money-back guarantee—costs $3.29 per month for a two-year plan ($78.96 in total), $4.99 per month for a one-year plan ($59.88 in total) or $11.99 per month for a monthly plan. Along with access to more than 59 countries, NordVPN also allows users to connect to multiple devices (from computers to phones to tablets) and offers 24-hour live chat support. Read on for step-by-step instructions on how to watch Eurovision in the US with NordVPN’s free trial.
- Sign up for NordVPN and create an account
- Log into your NordVPN account and click “Downloads” on the left-side menu
- Once you’ve installed NordVPN, log into your account
- Once NordVPN is set up, change your location to the “UK” by clicking “Quick Connect” or searching the country in the menu
- Visit the live programming page on BBC iPlayer‘s website
- Sign in or create an account and watch Eurovision concert in the US
Another popular VPN service is Pure VPN, which offers a 31-day free trial and a money-back guarantee. After the free trial ends, users can sign up for Pure VPN for $2.08 per month for a two-year plan + 3 free months ($49.95 in total), $3.24 per month for a one-year plan or $10.95 per month for a monthly plan. Pure VPN offers more than 6,5000 servers in over 78 countries across the world, as well as 24-hour live chat support. Read on for step-by-step instructions for how to watch Eurovision 2023 in the US with PureVPN’s free trial.
- Sign up for PureVPN and create an account
- Once you’ve created your account, scroll to the bottom of PureVPN‘s homepage and select the VPN that fits your device: Windows, MAC, IOS, etc.
- Click “Download the app”
- Once you’ve installed PureVPN, log into your account
- Once PureVPN is set up, change your location to the “UK” by searching for the country in the right bar
- Visit the live programming page on BBC iPlayer‘s website
- Sign in or create an account and watch Eurovision 2023 in the US
Mimicat, representative for Portugal. Photo by Anthony Devlin/Getty Images
How to watch Eurovision 2023 with Peacock
How can viewers watch Eurovision 2023 live online? Eurovision is available to stream on Peacock, which offers three plans: Peacock Free, which users can sign up for with just their email; Peacock Premium, which includes ads and costs $4.99 per month; and Peacock Premium Plus, which is ad-free and costs $9.99 per month. To watch the Eurovision 2023 live, however, users will need to sign up for Peacock Premium or Peacock Premium Plus.
Who’s hosting Eurovision 2023?
Who’s hosting Eurovision 2023? The contest will be hosted by Ted Lasso star Hannah Waddingham and beloved talk show host Graham Norton.
Who’s performing at Eurovision 2023?
Who’s performing at Eurovision 2023? Obviously, the main event is musical performances from the following countries, with their artist name and songs listed below:
- Albania: Albina & Familja Kelmendi – “Duje”
- Armenia: Brunette – “Future Lover”
- Australia: Voyager – “Promise”
- Austria: Teya & Salena – “Who The Hell Is Edgar?”
- Azerbaijan: TuralTuranX – “Tell Me More”
- Belgium: Gustaph – “Because Of You”
- Croatia: Let 3 – “Mama ŠČ!”
- Cyprus: Andrew Lambrou – “Break A Broken Heart”
- Czechia: Vesna – “My Sister’s Crown”
- Denmark: Reiley – “Breaking My Heart”
- Estonia: Alika – “Bridges”
- Finland: Käärijä – “Cha Cha Cha”
- France: La Zarra – “Évidemment”
- Georgia: Iru – “Echo”
- Germany: Lord of the Lost – “Blood & Glitter”
- Greece: Victor Vernicos – “What They Say”
- Iceland: Diljá – “Power”
- Ireland: Wild Youth – “We Are One”
- Israel: Noa Kirel – “Unicorn”
- Italy: Marco Mengoni – “Due Vite”
- Latvia: Sudden Lights – “Aijā”
- Lithuania: Monika Linkytė – “Stay”
- Malta: The Busker – “Dance (Our Own Party)”
- Moldova: Pasha Parfeni – “Soarele şi Luna”
- Netherlands: Mia Nicolai & Dion Cooper – “Burning Daylight”
- Norway: Alessandra – “Queen of Kings”
- Poland: Blanka – “Solo”
- Portugal: Mimicat – “Ai Coração”
- Romania: Theodor Andrei – “D.G.T. (Off and On)”
- San Marino: Piqued Jacks – “Like An Animal”
- Serbia: Luke Black – “Samo Mi Se Spava”
- Slovenia: Joker Out – “Carpe Diem”
- Spain: Blanca Paloma – “Eaea”
- Sweden: Loreen – “Tattoo”
- Switzerland: Remo Forrer – “Watergun”
- Ukraine: TVORCHI – “Heart Of Steel”
- United Kingdom: Mae Muller – “I Wrote a Song”
Last year’s winners Kalush Orchestra from Ukraine will open with a powerful performance titled “Voices of a New Generation” followed by their winning song “Stefania”. There’ll also be other Ukrainian performers from previous Eurovision contests: Go_A, Jamala, Verka Serduchka, and Tina Karol.
How does Eurovision work?
How does Eurovision work? Per the official website, Eurovision is an internationally televised songwriting competition, organized by the European Broadcasting Union and featuring participants chosen by EBU member broadcasters representing their countries from across Europe and beyond. Each participating broadcaster has until mid-March to choose a song and an artist to perform it. The song and artist can be selected through a televised national selection show (or shows), an internal process, or via any other means they decide.
The main rules relating to competing songs and artists are:
- Songs must be original and no more than 3 minutes in length
- Lead vocals must be performed live
- No more than 6 performers can take to the stage during any one performance
In each show, after all of the songs have been performed, each country will give two sets of points (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 and 12) to their favorite songs; one set is given by a jury of five music industry professionals from that country, and one set given by viewers watching the show in the country. Viewers can vote by telephone, SMS, and through the official app but out of fairness, you cannot vote for your own country. At the end of the Grand Final, the song that has received the most points wins the iconic trophy and is performed once more.
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