Worldvision Song Contest: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 15:46, 21 October 2025

The Worldvision Song Contest (often shortened to WSC or Worldvision or WV) is an international song competition which has been organised by the International Eurofan's Countries Organisation (IECO) annually since summer 2022. It is held in a different city each six months, however the same city can host the contest more than once.

At one time, the competition brings together Euro-fans and ordinary music lovers from all over the world. Now the geography of the curators of the competition includes Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, as well as those geographically residing in Austria, Greece, Malta, Poland and the United Arab Emirates.

Origins and history

The Worldvision Song Contest's founding stemmed from a desire to promote cooperation between euro-fans from different parts of the world. As in the previous edition, one of the ideas of the association was to include fans outside the post-Soviet zone. The new edition of the competition begins its countdown on March 6, 2022, when it was decided to transfer the activity of communication between the curators of the countries from VK to the Telegram platform and then on Instagram.

2022

The Worldvision Song Contest Q4-2022 was the first edition of the contest, organised by Televisión Española (TVE) and held on 22 November 2022 at the Palau Sant Jordi Arena in Barcelona, Spain. 13 countries entered the inaugural contest, with entries received from Australia, Hungary, Japan, Kazakhstan, Montenegro, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Thailand and the United Kingdom. Voting in this competition consisted of a single set of jury votes from each participating country. United Kingdom's Calum Scott was crowned the contest's first winner, with the song "Rise".

2023

The Worldvision Song Contest Q1-2023 was the second edition of the contest, organised by British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and held on 25 January 2023 at the AO Arena in Manchester, the United Kingdom. 24 countries took part in the second edition of the competition, among which the first participation was for Canada, China, Croatia, Denmark, Greece, Israel, Lebanon, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Serbia and the United States. Voting has undergone changes, according to which now two sets of points had to be given from each participating delegation of the country: the jury and the audience. Also, another additional set of points was formed from the total voting result of five independent observers of the competition. San Marino was voted the winner, represented by Annalisa with the song "Bellissima". The United States was the only participating country whose voting results were not received in full, for which the country was not admitted to the next competition.

The Worldvision Song Contest Q2-2023 was the third edition of the contest, organised by Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) and held on 2 July 2023 at the John Cain Arena in Melbourne, Australia. According to the rules of the competition, the season was supposed to take place in San Marino, but due to the lack of proper infrastructure to host the event, it was decided to move the competition to Australia, which won second place in the early season. 26 countries took part in the competition. Canada, Montenegro, North Macedonia and the United Kingdom decided not to compete in this edition, however Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Poland, Uzbekistan and Vietnam made its debut. Germany gained its first win in the contest, represented by Reve and "Still Dancing".

The Worldvision Song Contest Q3-2023 was the fourth edition of the contest, organised by Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR) and held on 14 September (semi-final) and 29 September 2023 (grand final) at the Lanxess Arena in Cologne, Germany. This was the first competition with a semi-final. A record 29 countries competed in this edition, which saw Canada returning to the contest along with new entrants Albania, Cyprus and France, while New Zealand decided to withdraw. 15 countries entered the first Worldvision semi-final, with the top 10 joining the 14 automatic qualifiers in the final. Norway became the fourth country to win the Worldvision title, with band The Score giving their first win with "Head Up".

The Worldvision Song Contest Q4-2023 was the fifth edition of the contest, organised by Norsk rikskringkasting AS (NRK) and held on 26 December 2023 (semi-final) and 6 January 2024 (grand final) at the Telenor Arena in Oslo, Norway. 29 countries took part in the competition, among which the first participation was for Malta and Switzerland, while San Marino and Uzbekistan decided to withdraw. Lebanon became the fifth country to win the Worldvision title, with duo Sasha Lopez and AMI with "Butterfly Dance".

2024

The Worldvision Song Contest Q1-2024 was the sixth edition of the contest, organised by Télé Liban (TL) and held on 28 and 29 February (semi-finals) and 10 March 2024 (grand final) at the Beirut Seaside Arena in Beirut, Lebanon. A second semi-final was introduced at this contest. A record 34 countries competed in this edition, which saw San Marino and Uzbekistan returning to the contest along with new entrants Armenia, Finland and Ireland. Portugal gained its first contest win, represented by Neoni and the song "Darkside".

The Worldvision Song Contest Q2-2024 was the seventh edition of the contest, organised by Rádio e Televisão de Portugal (RTP) and held on 18 August (both semi-finals) and 1 September 2024 (grand final) at the Multiusos de Guimarães in Guimarães, Portugal. The number of participants remained the same - 34 participating countries. United States returning to the contest along with new entrant Iceland. Poland and Uzbekistan withdrew from the competition. Vietnam gained its first contest win, represented by Michael Patrick Kelly featuring Rakim and the song "Wonders".

The Worldvision Song Contest Q3-2024 was the eingth edition of the contest, organised by Vietnam Television (VTV) and held on 14 (1st semi-final) and 15 (2nd semi-final) December and 27 December 2024 (grand final) at the Quần Ngựa Sports Palace in Hanoi, Vietnam. A record 37 countries took part in the season, bringing the number of countries in the final to 26. New Zealand, North Macedonia and Poland returning to the contest along with new entrant Azerbaijan, Belgium, Brazil and Russia. China, Finland, Greece and Malta withdrew from the competition. Israel gained its first contest win, represented by Elevator Boys and the song "Ruin Me".

The Worldvision Song Contest Q4-2024 was the ninth edition of the contest, organised by Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation (Kan) and held on 23 February (1st and 2nd semi-finals) and 7 March 2025 (grand final) at the TBA [arena] in Tel Aviv, Israel. 36 countries took part in the competition. Bosnia and Herzegovina and Cuba participating for the first time. Belgium, Ireland and Russia withdrew from the competition. Australia gained its first contest win, represented by Lady Gaga and the song "Abracadabra", scoring a record 449 points in the final.

2025

The Worldvision Song Contest Q1-2025 was the tenth edition of the contest, organised by Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) and held on 17 June (1st semi-finals) and 19 June (2nd semi-finals) and 29 June 2025 (grand final) at the MyState Bank Arena in Hobart, Australia. For the third time, a record 37 countries took part in the competition. Belgium and Ireland returning to the contest. Iceland and Poland withdrew from the competition. The winner was France with the song "FUFN", performed by Jade.

The Worldvision Song Contest Q2-2025 was the eleventh edition of the contest, organised by France Télévisions (FTV) and held on 31 August 2025 (1st and 2nd semi-finals) and a final on 7 September 2025 (grand final) at the Accor Arena in Paris, France. 35 countries took part in the competition. Czechia and Ukraine participating in the contest first time and Greece returning after three-episodes absences respectively. While Azerbaijan, Belgium, Cyprus Switzerland and the United States withdrew from the competition. The winner was Japan with the song "Messy", performed by Rose.

Format

Original songs representing the participating countries must be released no later than one year from the first day of the month of the contest (thus, for the contest, the final of which took place on July 23, 2022, compositions must be released no earlier than July 1, 2021). However, in the first contest, the final of which took place on July 23, 2022, the contest organizers allowed the selection of songs with a release date no older than January 1, 2021. A "country" as a participant is represented by one curator, an IECO member and usually a broadcaster from that country. The number of stages in the competition is determined based on the number of countries that have submitted their applications for participation.

Starting from the 3-2025 competition, a ban list for popular artists was introduced to balance the participating curators.

Selection

Each participating country, at its sole discretion, determines the process they may use to select their entry for the competition. Typical entry selection methods include an open national selection using public voting and an international jury; internal selection; and through a mixed format, when some decisions are made internally by the curator of the country, and the public takes part in others.

Participation

Further information: Countries of the Worldvision Song Contest

Active members (as opposed to observer members) of the IECO are eligible to participate. IECO members who wish to participate must fulfil conditions as laid down in the rules of the contest, a separate copy of which is drafted annually. After the candidate meets all the conditions for entry, the participant can choose the country he supervises and become its head of delegation.

Only a UN member country can be allowed to participate in IECO competitions. A maximum of 46 countries ^{(to be specified)} can take part in any one contest.

Forty-eight countries have participated at least once. These are listed here alongside the year in which they made their debut:

Season	Country
Q4-2022	Australia
	Hungary
	Japan
	Kazakhstan
	Montenegro
	Norway
	Portugal
	San Marino
	South Korea
	Spain
	Sweden
	Thailand
	United Kingdom

Season	Country
Q1-2023	Canada
	China
	Croatia
	Denmark
	Greece
	Israel
	Lebanon
	Netherlands
	North Macedonia
	Serbia
	United States
Q2-2023	Germany
Q2-2023	Italy

Season	Country
Q2-2023	New Zealand
	Poland
	Uzbekistan
	Vietnam
Q3-2023	Albania
	Cyprus
	France
Q4-2023	Malta
Q4-2023	Switzerland
Q1-2024	Armenia
	Finland
	Ireland
Q2-2024	Iceland

Season	Country
Q3-2024	Azerbaijan
	Belgium
	Brazil
	Russia
Q4-2024	Bosnia & Herzegovina
Q4-2024	Cuba
Q2-2025	Czechia
Q2-2025	Ukraine
Q3-2025	Malaysia
Q3-2025	Mexico

The following are the countries that have expressed their intention to debut at the competition in various seasons:

Hosting

The winning country traditionally hosts the following season's event. Preparations for each contest typically begin at the conclusion of the previous season's contest, with the winning country's head of delegation receiving a welcome package of information related to hosting the contest at the winner's press conference.

The host broadcaster will subsequently select a host city, typically a national or regional capital city, which must meet certain criteria set out in the contest's rules.

Organizational group

Members of the reference group are involved in organizing various competitions within the framework of IEKO, as well as resolving controversial situations, developing and adopting new rules. The reference group consists of permanent active members, current winners of competitions within the framework of IEKO, as well as one member elected by election among the remaining active curators of IEKO. Starting from the Q2-2024 season, the reference group includes active members and current winners of competitions within the IECO.

As of 20 Septembeer 2025, the reference group has 6 members:

Mark Solovyov (Supervisor, since Q4-2022)
Paša Kulik (Wikipedia, between Q2-2023 for Q4-2023 and since Q2-2024 and supervisor of Special Melody Contest for Q3-2025 and Q4-2025 seasons)
Anton Desyatov (invitation IECO)
Igor Kapsharin (Current winner of IEСO minor projects - Worldvision Q2-2025)
Nikita Belonogov (Current winner of IEСO minor projects - Worldvision Q1-2025)
Nikolay Serb (invitation IECO)

Rules

Further information: Rules of the Worldvision Song Contest

The contest is organised annually by the International Eurofan's Countries Organisation (IECO), together with the participating broadcaster of the host country. The event is supervised by a reference group which is represented by the Executive Supervisor, the Executive Secretary (appointed by the IECO) and the Head of Delegation of the host country of the current season. The reference group resolves important and controversial issues during the entire season. The current Executive Supervisor as of Summer 2022 season is Mark Nightingale.

Song eligibility and languages

Further information: Languages in the Worldvision Song Contest

All competing entries must be no longer than four and a half minutes. This rule only applies to the live performance version. In order for the entries in this year's contest to be considered eligible, they must not be released on the YouTube platform before the first day of July of the previous year (for the summer season) and before the first day of January of the previous year (for the winter season). All competitive entries must include vocals and lyrics, and purely instrumental works are not allowed. Participating broadcasters have the right to send a composition in the national or official language of the country. Also, the rules of the competition are available in public languages for all participating countries: English and French.

Artist eligibility and performances

A participating broadcaster has the right to nominate a solo performer, a duet or a musical group. There are no restrictions on the nationality or country of birth of competing artists, and participating broadcasters are free to choose an artist from any country. No performer may compete for more than one country in a given year.

Running order

From the very beginning of the competition, the order of performance of the participating countries is determined and approved by the reference group of the competition before the public announcement. This was done as a random draw to ensure the best experience for TV viewers and to ensure that all countries stand out, avoiding cases where songs of a similar style or tempo are played consecutively. The only place where a random draw is involved is the determination of the part of the performance of the participating country and the serial number for the host country in the final.

Voting

Edition	Points	Voting system
Q4-2022	(12, 10, 8–1) × 2	The jury and the televote each award an independent set of points. First the jury points are announced and then the televoting points are calculated together before being added to the jury points, effectively doubling the points which can be awarded in total.
Q1-2023 - Q2-2023	(12, 10, 8–1) × 2 +1	In the final, the jury and the televote each award an independent set of points. Also, an additional set of points have international viewers who were not represented by any of the participating countries.
Q3-2023 - Q2-2024	12, 10, 8–1 (semi-finals) (12, 10, 8–1) × 2 +1 (final)	In the semi-finals, only the televote is used to decide which songs receive points. In the final, the jury and the televote each award an independent set of points. Also, an additional set of points have international viewers who were not represented by any of the participating countries.
Q3-2024 - Q4-2024	12, 10, 8–1 × 2	International viewers were abolished and became part of the regular viewers. Now each competing country was not obliged to hold an audience vote. Each participating country could invite up to two viewers to vote in one or more shows, who had the right to rate the inviting game. In the semi-finals, the jury also began to vote together with the audience.
Q1-2025 -	12, 10, 8–1 × 2	The number of invited spectators from each participating country was reduced from two to one, and without the right to vote for the invited country. Individual spectators who were not invited to vote either by IECO itself or by participating countries could also participate in the voting.

Winning entries

Season		Date (Final)	Host city	Countries		Winner	Language(s)	Points	Runner-up
Season		Date (Final)	Host city	Total	Final	Winner	Language(s)	Points	Runner-up
I	Q4-22	22.11.2022	Barcelona	13		United Kingdom Calum Scott - Rise	English	172	Portugal
II	Q1-23	25.01.2023	Manchester	24		San Marino Annalisa - Bellissima	Italian	235	Australia
III	Q2-23	2.07.2023	Melbourne*	26		Germany Reve - Still Dancing	English	220	New Zealand
IV	Q3-23	29.09.2023	Cologne	29	24	Norway The Score - Head Up	English	278	Greece
V	Q4-23	6.01.2024	Oslo	29	24	Lebanon Sasha Lopez x AMI - Butterfly Dance	English	232	France
VI	Q1-24	10.03.2024	Beirut	34	24	Portugal Neoni - Darkside	English	286	Israel
VII	Q2-24	1.09.2024	Guimarães	34	24	Vietnam Michael Patrick Kelly ft. Rakim - Wonders	English	257	Serbia
VIII	Q3-24	27.12.2024	Hanoi	37	26	Israel Elevator Boys - Ruin Me	English	276	Norway
IX	Q4-24	7.03.2025	Tel Aviv	36	26	Australia Lady Gaga - Abracadabra	English, Imaginary	449	Spain
X	Q1-25	29.06.2025	Hobart	37	26	France Jade - FUFN	English	347	Sweden
XI	Q2-25	07.09.2025	Paris	35	26	Japan Rose - Messy	English	305	Spain
XII	Q3-25	XX.10.2025	Yokohama	30	24	Upcoming
XIII	Q4-25	XX.12.2025	Upcoming