Europavision Song Contest 2020

The Europavision Song Contest 2020 was the 3rd edition of the annual Europavision Song Contest. It took place in Stockholm,, following Smith & Thell's win at the 2019 contest in Bern, Switzerland with the song "Forgive Me Friend". It was the first time that the contest took place in. The contest was held at the Ericsson Globe, and consisted of two semi-finals on 17 and 19 March, and the final on 11 March 2020. The three live shows were hosted by Petra Mede, Måns Zelmerlöw and Eric Saade.

Forty-two countries participated in the contest. withdrew due to no interest in the contest. No countries debuted this time.

Venue
The Ericsson Globe is the largest hemispherical building on Earth and took two and a half years to build. Shaped like a large white ball, it has a diameter of 110 meters (361 feet) and an inner height of 85 meters (279 feet). The volume of the building is 605,000 cubic meters (21,188,800 cubic feet). It has a seating capacity of 16,000 spectators for shows and concerts, and 13,850 for ice hockey.

Sweden
Sweden is a Scandinavian nation with thousands of coastal islands and inland lakes, along with vast boreal forests and glaciated mountains. Its principal cities, eastern capital Stockholm and southwestern Gothenburg and Malmö, are all coastal. Stockholm is built on 14 islands. It has more than 50 bridges, as well as the medieval old town, Gamla Stan, royal palaces and museums such as open-air Skansen.

Stockholm
Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, encompasses 14 islands and more than 50 bridges on an extensive Baltic Sea archipelago. The cobblestone streets and ochre-colored buildings of Gamla Stan (the old town) are home to the 13th-century Storkyrkan Cathedral, the Kungliga Slottet Royal Palace and the Nobel Museum, which focuses on the Nobel Prize. Ferries and sightseeing boats shuttle passengers between the islands.

Semi-final allocation draw
The draw to determine the allocation of the participating countries into their respective semi-finals took place at Stockholm City Hall on 6 January 2020, hosted by Petra Mede and Måns Zelmerlöw. The thirty-six semi-finalists had been allocated into six pots, based on historical voting patterns as calculated by the contest's official televoting partner Digame. Drawing from different pots helps to reduce the chance of so-called "bloc voting" and increase suspense in the semi-finals.

Rules and Voting.
 * The song can't be cover or instrumental.
 * All competing countries are obliged to vote in their own semi final. Failing to do so will result in a disqualification of the entry and risk to lose their spot in the final.
 * The automically qualified countries were assigned one semi final they are obliged to vote in.
 * There will be 10 qualifiers from each semi final.

Semi-final 1
The first semi-final will take place on 17 March 2020 at 21:00 (CEST). Eighteen countries will participate in the first semi-final. Those countries plus France, Sweden and the United Kingdom will vote in this semi-final.

Semi-final 2
The second semi-final will take place on 19 March 2020 at 21:00 (CEST). Eighteen countries will participate in the second semi-final. Those countries plus Germany, Russia and Spain will vote in this semi-final.

Final
The final took place on 21 March 2020 at 21:00 (CEST). Twenty-six countries participated in the final, with all 42 participating countries eligible to vote. The running order for the final was revealed after the press conference of the second semi-final qualifiers on 19 March.