October 2017

Semi-final 1 date
 Semi-final 2 date
 Final date
 Venue
 Presenter(s)
 Interval act
 Entries
 Debuting
 System
 Winner
 ◄ August 2017  December 2017 ►

**Europe Song Contest 11**, was the eleventh edition of Europe Song Contest. It took place in Scotland, in the United Kingdom following Ella's and Sigala's winning in August 2017. This was the 4th time that the United Kingdom hosted the show. The country won the contest the most times and also this was Ella's second winning edition, which is a record so far.

The contest took place on 10, 12 and on 21 October 2017, at the SSE Hydro, in the Scottish capital, Glasgow.

34 countries had confirmed that they would like to take part in the contest this time. Includes with Belarus, who participate for the first time in the contest and with Croatia, Iceland, Latvia and Lithuania, who returned back to the contest after four, one and two omission editions.

The winner was Greece with the song "Primadonna", performed by Marina and The Diamonds. This was Greece's first win – and first top-five placing – in 11 editions of participation, the longest winless run by a country in the history. Kosovo and Norway finished in second and third place, respectively.

## **Location**

*For further information see Glasgow*
     Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland, and third-largest in the United Kingdom. Glasgow is a port city on the River Clyde in Scotland's western Lowlands. It's famed for its Victorian and art nouveau architecture, a rich legacy of the city's 18th–20th-century prosperity due to trade and shipbuilding. Today it's a national cultural hub, home to institutions including the Scottish Opera, Scottish Ballet and National Theatre of Scotland, as well as acclaimed museums and a thriving music scene. Historically part of Lanarkshire, the city is now located within the boundaries of Glasgow City Council – one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It is situated on the River Clyde in the country's West Central Lowlands. Inhabitants of the city are referred to as "Glaswegians" or "Weegies".

### **Venue**

     The SSE Hydro is a multi-purpose indoor arena located within the Scottish Event Campus in Glasgow, Scotland. The arena was initially named The Hydro after its main sponsor, energy company Scottish & Southern Energy subsidiary Scottish Hydro. The company then re-branded itself and its subsidiary companies as SSE, however, the Hydro name was retained despite it no longer being a trading name. The arena was designed by the London-based architects Foster + Partners and officially opened on 30 September 2013, with a concert by Rod Stewart.

### **Candidate cities**

It was announced by the British delegation that Scotland will host the 2 semi-finals and the grand final of the 11th edition. The final decision of the host city was published on 15 September.

## **Format**

The preliminary dates for the contest were announced on 27 August 2017 with the semi-finals took place on 10 and 12 October and the final on 21 October 2017.

### **Presenter**

     The presenter of the 11th edition was announced on 15 September. Louisa Johnson (born 11 January 1998) is an English singer and songwriter from Thurrock, Essex. She was the winner of the twelfth UK series of The X Factor in 2015. Aged 17 at the time of winning, Johnson is the programme's youngest winner. She was featured on Clean Bandit's hit single "Tears". Her debut album, originally due for release on 18 November 2016, will be released in 2017.

She represented the United Kingdom with Clean Bandit in December 2016, in the sixth edition. They finished on the 3rd place with 137 points.

Louisa was the spokesperson for the United Kingdom once, in April 2017, in the eighth edition

### **Semi-final allocation draw**

The draw to determine the allocation of the participating countries into their respective semi-finals will take place in Scotland on 26 September 2017.

### **Opening and interval acts**

It was announced on 11 October 2017 that last edition's winner, Ella Eyre and Sigala, would be part of the opening act during the show. Ella will sing her new song "Ego" together with Ty Dolla $ign, as the interval act.

## **Participating countries**

Participating countries have until 25 August 2017 to submit their applications for participation in the contest.

## Participation map

 Participating countries.
 Did not qualify from the semi-final.
 Countries that participated in the past but not in October 2017.

## **Active members**

* Armenia – On 20 September 2017, 5 days before the deadline, the Armenian delegation has confirmed that the country will withdraw from the 11th edition due to wrong results.
* Azerbaijan – The delegation of Azerbaijan didn't show interest in returning after their withdrawal in June 2017.
* Belarus – On 5 July 2017, the Belarussian delegation has confirmed that the broadcaster is debuting in the contest.
* Czech Republic – It was revealed on the 25 September that the country would withdraw from the eleventh edition.
* Hungary – The previous head of delegation decided to resign from his position, therefore the country was forced to withdraw.
* Israel – Israel hasn't participated in the contest since April 2016. The specific reason behind the withdrawal has never been confirmed.
* Malta – The Maltese delegation decided to withdraw from the forty-eighth edition due to lack of interest.
* Montenegro – It was announced that the country would be taking a break for another edition.
* Serbia – On 16 September 2017, the delegation of Serbia has confirmed that the country will not return to the upcoming Europe Song Contest edition in Glasgow.
* Slovenia – The country will withdraw due to a scandal between the broadcaster and the council
* Switzerland – On 22 September 2017, the Swiss delegation has confirmed that the country will not take part in the next Europe Song Contest edition.

## **External links**

* Facebook
* Instagram
* YouTube
* Dailymotion
* Official page