Binational Music Fest 17

Final date
 Venue
 Executive producer
 Presenter(s)
 Opening act
 Interval act
 Entries
 Debuting
 System
 Winner

**Binational Music Fest 17**, often referred to as **BMF #17**, was the sixteenth edition of Binational Music Fest, It took place in Philiden, following the country's victory in the previous edition with "4 Myself" by AC Bonifacio. This was the first time that the country had hosted the contest. The contest was held at the New Clark City Athletics Stadium and consisted of two semi-finals and a final. The three live shows were presented by Filipino-Canadian singer and actor Darren Espanto, Swedish singer-songwriter Dotter, and Filipino drag performer Marina Summers.

Thirty-seven countries participated in the seventeenth edition. Bulbania, Byelorussian States, Equatorial Namibia, FYR Romania, and Icelay made their debut appearance. Faroe Iceland and State of Myanmar returned to the contest. However, Azerbaistralia, Belaruly, Denland, Lilles, USS England, and Viet China withdrew from the competition.

The winner was Caguay with the song "Tongue" by Rêve which scored 148 points, winning by a margin of 2 points in front of Pene. The podium was completed by UK Ireland, which finished in third place. Philiden, the host country placed twenty-third in the final.

## Location

### Bidding phase

The host broadcaster launched the bidding process after AC Bonifacio’s victory in the 16th contest in West Indies Japan, and Philiden was officially confirmed as the host country. Any potential candidates must meet a set of minimum standards that demonstrate they have the capacity, capability, and experience to host an event of this scale and complexity.

The selection criteria for the host city have included: a suitable venue capable of accommodating at least 5,000 spectators, an international press centre for a maximum of 1,000 journalists with adequate facilities for all the delegates, a good distribution of hotel rooms, at different price categories, able to accommodate at least 1,500 delegates, accredited journalists and spectators, and an efficient transport infrastructure, including a nearby international airport with easy reachability and readily available connections with the city, venue, and hotels.

During the first stage of the bidding process, the broadcaster received expressions of interest from various cities and towns across the country, 7 of which moved on to the longlist. 4 of these ended up being shortlisted: Capas, Gothenburg, Pasay, and Stockholm. These cities went to the second stage to develop their bids in detail for evaluation. TBA was announced as the host city, with TBA as the chosen venue for the contest.

**Key:**

     Host venue
     Shortlisted venues

### Host city

**Capas**, officially the **Municipality of Capas** is a 1st class municipality in the province of Tarlac, Philippines, and one of the richest towns in the province. The town also consists of numerous subdivisions and exclusive villages.

Capas is being dubbed as the “Tourism Capital of Tarlac." Apart from being known as the final site of the infamous Bataan Death March, it is also known for Mount Pinatubo treks, where thousands of mountaineers and visitors go. The town has some industrial factories like the PilMiCo.

### Venue

The **New Clark City Athletics Stadium**, also referred to as the **New Clark Stadium**, is a multi-purpose stadium located at the New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac, Philippines. It is the primary venue of the New Clark City Sports Hub, which is part of the National Government Administrative Center. It hosted the athletics events and the closing ceremony of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games. The stadium can be used to host various sporting events including athletics or track and field, and football, and also for the concert events. It hosted the closing ceremony of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games. It also the home stadium of United City F.C.

The stadium which sits on a footprint of 25,000 m2 (270,000 sq ft) has a seating capacity for 20,000 people and has 21 rows of seats.

## National selections

One country held a national selection to select the artist and song that would represent them in the contest this edition.

### South Yugoslav Music Festival

**South Yugoslav Music Festival #1** was a national selection held by  South Yugoslavia to select their entry for the contest.

## Format

### Semi-final Allocation Draw

The draw to determine the allocation of the participating countries into their respective semi-finals took place on 15 November 2023. The first part of the draw determined in which semi-final the automatic qualifiers would have to vote. The second part of the draw decided in which half of the respective semi-finals each country would perform, with the exact running order determined by the producers of the show at a later date. Sixteen countries participated in the first semi-final and fifteen countries participated in the second semi-final. Nine countries from each semi-final joined the automatic qualifiers in the final, where a total of twenty-four countries participated.

The thirty-one semi-finalists were allocated into six pots, based on their geographical place and cultural similarities. Drawing from different pots helps in reducing the chance of so-called neighbour voting and increasing suspense in the semi-finals. Each time a country was drawn from the pot, its semi-final and half of the semi-final was determined.

The five pots were the following:

* Icelay
* Republic of Montenegro
* Spaice
* State of Myanmar
* Firgentina
* Nimaica
* Nombourg
* Spaigal
* UK Ireland
* Bulbania
* Gerland
* Germastria
 Pot 4
 * Byelorussian States
* Cakhstan
* FYR Romania
* Kyrgyzbekistan
* Swedesrael
* Cungapore
* Lithuambia
* Pene
* West Indies Japan
* LPD Thailand
* Rondia
* Rwarway
* South Yugoslavia

## Results

### Semi-finals 1

Sixteen countries participated in the first semi-final. Those countries plus Croarbia, Kazanmark, and Walelia voted in this semi-final, as well as non-participating countries under an aggregated "Rest of the World" vote. The highlighted countries qualified for the final.

**Note**

1. ↑ Contains phrases in English.

### Semi-finals 2

Fifteen countries participated in the second semi-final. Those countries plus Philiden, Serkey, and State of Islands voted in this semi-final, as well as non-participating countries under an aggregated "Rest of the World" vote. The highlighted countries qualified for the final.

**Note**

1. ↑ Contains phrases in Spanish, French, German, Polish, Greek, Ukrainian, and Korean.
2. ↑ Contains phrases in French.
3. ↑ Contains words in English.

### Final

Twenty-four countries participated in the finale, with all 37 participating countries eligible to vote, as well as non-participating countries under an aggregated "Rest of the World" vote.

**Note**

1. ↑ Contains one line in English.
2. ↑ Contains phrases in English.

## Detailed voting results

### Semifinal 1

#### 12 points

Below is a summary of the maximum 12 points awarded by each country's vote in the first semi-final:

A total of 10 countries received at least one set of 12 points during the semifinal. West Indies Japan was the only non-qualifier to receive 12 points.

### 12 points

Below is a summary of the maximum 12 points awarded by each country's vote in the second semi-final:

A total of 12 countries received at least one set of 12 points during the semifinal. Gerland, Rondia and Swedesrael were the only non-qualifiers to receive 12 points.

### Grand Final

#### 12 points

Below is a summary of the maximum 12 points awarded by each country's vote in the semi-final:

FYR Romania failed to vote. A total of 17 countries received at least one set of 12 points during the grand final. An eventual winner, Caguay, received 12 points from three countries. The greatest number of countries awarded 12 points to Icelay.

## Other countries

*Further information: List of countries in the Binational Music Fest*

* Azerbaistralia: The broadcaster announced they would undergo a temporary break from the contest.
* Belaruly: The broadcaster announced they would not be present in the 17th edition.
* Denland: Despite initially confirming their participation, the broadcaster later announced their withdrawal. The broadcaster, however, received a fine for withdrawing after the deadline.
* Lilles: Despite confirming their participation, the broadcaster failed to submit a valid entry within the deadline and was forced to withdraw.
* USS England: The broadcaster failed to state their intention. Thus, they were not present in the participating countries list.
* Viet China: The broadcaster confirmed their withdrawal after the HoD had resigned from their position.