Eurovision Battle Royale 2028

Semi-Final 1
 Semi-Final 2
 Semi-Final 3
 Grand Final
 Host Country
 Participating Countries
 Debuting
 Returning
 Withdrawing
 Winning Citizen
 Country

The Eurovision Battle Royale 2028, also known as the Eurovision 2028, or the EBR 2028, or more simply Malta 2028, was the 13th annual edition of the Battle Royale contest that took place in Malta. A total of 55 countries announced their intent to participate in the event. The Battle Royale consisted of three semi-finals, with each starting 24 hours after the one that preceded it.

The host country, Malta, was the winning nation of the 12th edition the year before, which gave them automatic hosting responsibilities for this edition, as well as automatically qualifying them to the Grand Final. The other countries were obliged to compete in three semi-finals, with each being distributed randomly through a random draw. During the semi-finals, 36 citizens participated in a fight to the death until only between 11 and 12 citizens remained, with the remaining qualifying for the Grand Final in which another fight to the death would take place, this time until only one remained.

The winner of this edition of the Eurovision Battle Royale was Charles van Eijl of Belgium. He defeated dark horse Rory Dyason of Northern Ireland, who finished as the runner-up. Malta's very own Jackson Padovani finished 3rd with no kills while Norway and Ireland completed the Top 5. The host country's other citizen, Leah Ondini finished in 17th place.

This edition was notable for having the shortest-lasting Grand Final, which lasted only 9 days, as well as having the smallest Arena.

## Arena

The Arena for this edition was decided on the 15th of November, 2027.

Sunset over the Blue Lagoon.Overhead view of the entire Arena, criticized by some for being too small.
## Format and Rules

The draw to determine in which semi-final each country would participate, as well as the podium numbers on which the host country's citizens would start, took place in Valetta, on the 2nd of December, 2027. Each country had until December 1st to announce their intent to participate in the Eurovision, and each country had until March 1, 2028 to submit their citizens.

The majority of countries chose their citizen through an internal selection, by means of a "Reaping". The reaping occurs when the governments of Europe, each organizes a televised lottery of their citizens where every single one, aged between 13 and 50, are obliged to have their names placed into a big pot of sorts, and after randomizing the names like a true lottery, one male and one female name are read out live on national television by government officials. These citizens are the reaped citizens to represent their country in the Eurovision. It's notable that each year the majority of citizens see this as an exciting honor, and many volunteer to be picked. To profit from this, it's necessary for each hopeful volunteer to pay money in order for their name to be entered more than once. This process could cost from as little as £50 in poorer countries, to £500 in more wealthy ones. The maximum number of times that a volunteer can have their name in a pot is 100. One would think that there wouldn't be that many volunteers for such a violent and life-ending event, but in this universe, the citizens of Europe look extremely positively on the event and see it as rebirth of the Golden Age of Ancient Greece and Rome; therefore, there are thousands of citizens each year who try to volunteer to bring glory and honor to their country.

In the build-up to the actual event, each reaped citizen is invited to many locations all throughout Europe to promote themselves, forge alliances with the other citizens, and talk with potential sponsors. These official parties are announced by the Event Organizers (EOs) usually around the start of the new year. These are televised and watched by millions as well, similar to how millions each year watch the red carpet for award shows.

The list of Official Parties for this year:

* Germany: Berlin (4 March)
* Russia: St. Petersburg (18 March)
* Monaco: Monte Carlo (31 March)
* Italy: Roma (8 April)

These parties aren't obligatory however, and some alternatives to this include immediately moving into the Citizen's Village (usually a high-tec tower or complex located in or near the city center of the most populous city in the host country). In any case, citizens are obliged to move into the Citizen's Village before the 1 of May, 2028. This is because each citizen needs time to get their fitness up and competitive to put on an entertaining TV show, as well as acclimate to the host country. The EOs provide each country and citizen with their own team of trainers, cooks, stylists, and other specialists free of charge to ensure that each citizen can become fit and competitive enough so the Battle Royale will be as entertaining as ever. For the month that the citizens live there, they are encouraged to learn survival techniques and work out so their chances of survival in the harsh Arena increases.

The night before the first semi-final, the Opening Ceremony takes place. Comparable to Olympic ceremonies, this ceremony celebrates the history and culture of the host country, and further includes multiple shows of firework, music, and other cultural and ethnic performances, as well as high-tec displays and other pyrotechnics. Following the cultural show is the Parade of Nations. Each citizen from the participating countries were brought into the main complex (usually the widest and biggest street in the Capitol of the host country) on high-tec self-driving chariots and shown to billions worldwide. More so, each chariot was decorated with symbols from the country each citizen is from, and followed their national flag. As soon as the pomp and celebration finished, the EOs and government officials of the host country gave speeches, the Eurovision Battle Royale flag was raised with the host country's flag, and the citizen's oath. The final event of the ceremony is the lighting of the cauldron, performed by the winner of the previous edition in every edition so far except the first.

Following the Opening Ceremony, the citizens are forced into lockdown in the Citizen's Village until their semi-final. It is forbidden for a citizen to have prior knowledge to results in a semi-final or access to anything that could give them an advantage in their semi-final. In fact, the citizens are forced to go with television and internet until their semi-final. This is to assure that the suspense is retained and each citizen participates fairly.

## Tie-Break rules for the Semi-Finals

1. **Top 11 or 12 remaining citizens in each semi-final all live to compete in the Grand Final**
2. **Of those, they are firstly ranked by number of kills they have committed.**
3. **If the citizens have the same number of kills, then the tie-break favors the one that reached that number of kills the earliest.**
4. **If all is still tied, then the Degrees of Separation Rule is enforced.**

ex. Jan of Germany kills only Teo of Belgium. Teo of Belgium had killed 2 other citizens beforehand. Erik of Sweden only kills Andriy of Russia. Andriy of Russia had killed 1 citizen beforehand. Jan of Germany will be ranked higher than Erik of Sweden in the semi-finals.
5. **This Degree of Separation Rule will continue until necessary.**
6. **If all is still tied, the tie-break favors those who are furthest away from pod number 18.**
7. **If all is still tied, then the citizens will share the position.**
## Qualification for the Grand Final

Thirty-six citizens participated in each semi-final. Fifty-five countries participated in the Eurovision Battle Royale this year.

### Semi-Final 1

The first semi-final took place between May 31st and June 4th.

### Semi-Final 2

The second semi-final took place between June 1st and June 8th.

### Semi-Final 3

The third semi-final took place between June 2nd and June 6th.

## Summary of the Semi-Finals

Summary of Kills during the Semi-FinalsSemi-Final 1Semi-Final 2Semi-Final 3

## **The Grand Final**

Welcome to the start of the Eurovision Battle Royale 2028. In just under 5 minutes, thirty-six of Europe's finest and bravest citizens will be raised onto their pods going into the Arena. We are expecting this year's Grand Final to be the fastest one yet, as it takes place on a tiny island, so be prepared to see plenty of action in only a few moments of time! In the end, only one will emerge as the sole victor and Champion of Europe. We can only imagine how nervous and anxious the fans from the finalist nations must be, and how even more nervous their citizens must be!

### Day 1 (June 16)

- Lucia Marcel of  Italy is killed by Martha Paraskevoula of  Greece.
- Maksim Ozerov of  Russia is killed by Martha Paraskevoula of  Greece.
- Adrien Veilleux of  Luxembourg is killed by Zipiro Sasiain of  Spain.
- Jeroen Luuks of  Netherlands is killed by Óli Dahl of  Faroe Islands.
- Mirena Nesimi of  Kosovo is killed by Élodie Desnoyers of  Monaco.
- Vilijem Strnad of  Slovenia is mercy-killed by his ally Élodie Desnoyers of  Monaco.
- Audrone Kemeziene of  Lithuania is killed by Nicole Henderson of  Northern Ireland.
- Serafima Petrovna of  Belarus is killed by Anders Osland of  Norway.
- Torsten Meier of  Liechtenstein is killed by Jordan Lane of  Ireland.
- Marina Waechter of  Germany is killed by Jordan Lane of  Ireland.
- Pouragn Tateossian of  Armenia is killed by Kirill Tsedlits of  Belarus.
- Margaret Sutherland of  Scotland is killed by Kirill Tsedlits of  Belarus.
- Virginijus Paliakas of  Lithuania is killed by Gavril Yoanov of  Macedonia.
- Mirko Katalenić of  Croatia is killed by Denis Aumann of  Germany.

####  Summary

Wow! That was a record-breaker. This opening bloodbath was perhaps the bloodiest and most violent yet! Many favorites were surprisingly killed, such as Vilijem of Slovenia, Marina of Germany, Torsten of Liechtenstein, and Adrien of Luxembourg! They were heavy favorites before the Grand Final but now they're dead. Four standout citizens today were Martha of Greece, Élodie of Monaco, Jordan of Ireland, and Kirill of Belarus. They each received two kills. Will they be our top 4? With nearly half the citizens already gone, this will certainly be the quickest Eurovision yet.

Fourteen citizens died, 22 remain.

### Day 2 (June 17)
- Cvijeta Demšar of  Slovenia is killed by Anders Osland of  Norway.
- Élodie Desnoyers of  Monaco is killed in a trap set by Rory Dyason of  Northern Ireland.
- Desislava Gavrilova of  Bulgaria dies of wounds sustained in a battle during the Cornucopia Bloodbath.

####  Summary

More shock today, as the top favorite Cvijeta of Slovenia has been surprisingly killed off by the dark horse, Anders of Norway. He bashed her head with a rock as she slept. Later in the day, sudden favorite Élodie of Monaco was tracked down and drowned on the Mediterranean seashore by silent yet brutal Rory of Northern Ireland.

Three citizens died, 19 remain.

### Day 3 (June 18)
- Olivie Coudert of  France is killed by Leah Ondini of  Malta.

####  Summary

There was less action today but plenty to cheer about if you're rooting for the Maltese. The host nation secured their first kill today when Leah and Jackson chased and cornered Olivie of France onto a cliff, where Leah stabbed her and pushed her to her death into the sea.

One citizen died, 18 remain.

### Day 4 (June 19)
- Kirill Tsedlits of  Belarus is killed by Gavril Yoanov of  Macedonia.
- Leah Ondini of  Malta is killed by Charles van Eijl of  Belgium.
- Mylene Beck of  Liechtenstein is killed by Nicole Henderson of  Northern Ireland.
- Atanasije Obradović of  Montenegro is bitten by a rattlesnake and dies hours later.

####  Summary

Just a day after the host nation was given confidence that they could get back-to-back victories, Charles of Belgium came and hurt those dreams when he killed Leah. Kirill of Belarus was a heavy favorite but he was killed by one of the pre-Grand Final favorites that didn't die: Gavril of Macedonia, who is looking to secure his country's second Eurovision victory. Mylene of Liechtenstein was also tipped to do well, but fell short when she was strangled to death by Nicole of Northern Ireland.

Four citizens died, 14 remain.

### Day 5 (June 20)
- Martha Paraskevoula of  Greece is killed by Óli Dahl of  Faroe Islands.

####  Summary

Well she had a great start, becoming a citizen to watch on the first day, but Martha of Greece wasn't able to keep up the momentum and today she was picked off by Óli of Faroe Islands, who is firmly rising in the ranks and becoming a real contender to win.

One citizen died, 13 remain.

### Day 6 (June 21)
- Jordan Lane of  Ireland is killed by Zipiro Sasiain of  Spain.
- Marianne Bendtsen of  Denmark is killed by Anders Osland of  Norway.

####  Summary

Jordan also had a great start to the Eurovision, but like Martha yesterday, he wasn't able to keep up the momentum. Zipiro, on the other hand, has had a great Eurovision so far and records his second kill after killing Jordan from Ireland. No one expected him to do well since he had an uneventful semi-final, but he is really becoming the dark horse and could potentially win now. Anders of Norway, though, remains the firm favorite after getting his third kill against his former ally Marianne of Denmark. She attacked him out of nowhere earlier this afternoon, causing him to flip her over his back onto the rocks and choke her to death.

Two citizens died, 11 remain.

### Day 7 (June 22)

**Attention Citizens! A huge earthquake was just recorded off the coast of Malta, and a tsunami warning is now in effect for the Arena. Find shelter if you wish to live!**
- Erbay Akkoyun of  Turkey is swept out to see by the tsunami.
- Óli Dahl of  Faroe Islands drowns in the tsunami after being pushed into it by Charles van Eijl of  Belgium.
- Nicole Henderson of  Northern Ireland slips down some rocks and drowns int the tsunami.
- Gavril Yoanov of  Macedonia dies in the tsunami after being knocked unconscious by Nina Bourne of  Ireland.
- Zipiro Sasiain of  Spain is swept up by the tsunami and forcibly crashed into the rocky cliff walls, dying of blunt force trauma.

####  Summary

Things are getting really exciting now! We are now in our top 6, which includes Jackson of Malta! Who will win? It's anyone's call now!

Five citizens died, 6 remain.

### Day 8 (June 23)
- Denis Aumann of  Germany is killed by Rory Dyason of  Northern Ireland.
- Nina Bourne of  Ireland is killed by Rory Dyason of  Northern Ireland.
- Anders Osland of  Norway is killed by Charles van Eijl of  Belgium.

####  Summary

That was a shock! Anders against Charles was a battle we'd thought we would see as a final, not for 4th place! Anders of Norway had been the odds on favorite, but he fell at the last hurdle and now only finished fourth after having his throat slit by Charles van Eijl, who is now joint-second favorite to win alongside Jackson of Malta, trailing Rory Dyason of Northern Ireland who is odds-on favorite to win. There was huge controversy that overshadowed the jubilation though. The killing of the Irish citizen by the Northern Irish citizen has apparently sparked indignation and protests in Ireland. Considering the bloody history between those two countries, this might get political which is a real shame. This is reminiscent to Eurovision 2022, the most dramatic and politicized battle royale where the Kosovar citizen killed the Serbian citizen in the final showdown and won, causing an intense political rift between the two nations. We hope this doesn't reach those levels in the likely event that Rory wins!

Three citizens died, 3 remain.

### Day 9 (June 24)
- Jackson Padovani of  Malta is killed by Rory Dyason of  Northern Ireland.
- Rory Dyason of  Northern Ireland is killed by Charles van Eijl of  Belgium.

####  Summary

And that's it! Ladies and Gentlemen, the winner of the 13th Eurovision Battle Royale is Charles van Eijl of Belgium! Congratulations!

What an exciting final that was. Rory of Northern Ireland was so close to being the true dark horse, coming out of nowhere at the very end to dominate the competition. He killed Jackson of Malta - ruining the host nation's own chances to get a back-to-back victory. The final battle between Rory and Charles was an epic and picturesque one: taking place at sunset, with the setting sun on the Mediterranean on a backdrop above the Blue Lagoon, as the two men fought each other with all their might. In the end, the older citizen Charles pinned Rory down and choked him with his own uniform collar. Rory struggled against the Belgian, but nothing was going to break Charles' grip. A minute or two later, Rory stopped struggling and the firework went off in the background to signal his death. Charles left his body at the edge of the cliff and walked away without looking back.