The 70th Eurovision Song Contest begins its competitive phase on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, when fifteen countries take the stage at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna, Austria, for the first semi-final of the year. Ten of those fifteen acts will advance to the Grand Final on May 16, decided by a combination of national jury votes and public televoting. Italy, as one of the pre-qualified Big Five countries, performs as a guest act but does not compete for a qualifying place.
What Is Happening and Where to Watch
The show begins at 21:00 CEST - that is 8:00 PM in the United Kingdom, 3:00 PM Eastern Time in the United States, and 5:00 AM AEST on Wednesday, May 13 in Australia. BBC One and BBC iPlayer carry the broadcast free in the UK, presented live from Vienna by Rylan and Angela Scanlon. In Australia, SBS and SBS On Demand stream the event at no cost. US fans have two options: Peacock, which requires a subscription starting at $7.99 per month, or the official Eurovision YouTube channel, which is offering a free live stream in the United States for the first time in 2026. The YouTube channel also serves viewers in Canada and most other countries without a dedicated domestic broadcaster.
- UK: BBC One / BBC iPlayer / BBC Radio 2 / BBC Sounds - Free
- US: Eurovision YouTube - Free | Peacock - From $7.99/month
- Australia: SBS / SBS On Demand - Free
- Canada & Global: Eurovision YouTube - Free where available
How to Access Free Coverage From Outside Your Country
BBC iPlayer and SBS On Demand are both publicly funded and free to use, but broadcasting rights require them to restrict access by geographic location. Outside the UK, BBC iPlayer reads your IP address and blocks the stream automatically; SBS applies the same restriction to non-Australian connections. A VPN - a virtual private network - solves this by routing your connection through a server in the target country, assigning you a local IP address that the platform accepts. This is among the most straightforward and widely used applications of VPN technology.
NordVPN is the recommended option for this purpose. It maintains an extensive UK server network, uses the NordLynx protocol for fast and stable performance suited to a live broadcast of several hours, and reliably unblocks BBC iPlayer. Apps are available for Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Android TV, and Amazon Fire TV. The process is simple: install the app, connect to a UK server, open BBC iPlayer, create a free BBC account if you do not already have one, and begin watching. If a stream fails to load, switching to a different UK server typically resolves it. Surfshark offers a comparable experience at a lower entry price with unlimited simultaneous connections, while Proton VPN provides a privacy-focused alternative with a free tier available for viewers who prefer not to commit to a paid plan.
The Running Order for Semi-Final 1
Fifteen acts perform across the evening, with Italy's Sal Da Vinci appearing seventh in the order as a non-competing guest. The ten qualifying countries are selected from the remaining fifteen. The full running order is as follows:
- 1 - Moldova: Satoshi, "Viva, Moldova!"
- 2 - Sweden: FELICIA, "My System"
- 3 - Croatia: LELEK, "Andromeda"
- 4 - Greece: Akylas, "Ferto"
- 5 - Portugal: Bandidos do Cante, "Rosa"
- 6 - Georgia: Bzikebi, "On Replay"
- 7 - Italy (guest): Sal Da Vinci, "Per Sempre Si"
- 8 - Finland: Linda Lampenius x Pete Parkkonen, "Liekinheitin"
- 9 - Montenegro: Tamara Zivkovic, "Nova Zora"
- 10 - Estonia: Vanilla Ninja, "Too Epic To Be True"
- 11 - Israel: Noam Bettan, "Michelle"
- 12 - Belgium: ESSYLA, "Dancing on the Ice"
- 13 - Lithuania: Lion Ceccah, "Solo Quiero Mas"
- 14 - San Marino: SENHIT, "Superstar"
- 15 - Poland: ALICJA, "Pray"
- 16 - Serbia: LAVINA, "Kraj Mene"
The Significance of the 70th Edition
Reaching a 70th edition makes Eurovision one of the longest-running international broadcast events in television history. Vienna last hosted the contest in 1967, making the city's return to the Wiener Stadthalle a rare reunion with its own place in the competition's history. Austria earned hosting rights by winning the previous year's contest, following the standard format in which the winning country assumes responsibility for staging the following year's event. The Grand Final on May 16 will determine this year's winner and, with it, next year's host country. Semi-Final 2 takes place on Thursday, May 14, before the full field assembles for the final.
