Portugal is in the Eurovision final

Portugal’s representative at the 68th Eurovision Song Contest, Iolanda with the song “Grito”, today guaranteed passage to the final of the contest, scheduled for Saturday in Malmö, Sweden.

Today, in addition to “Grito”, the songs from Serbia, Slovenia, Ukraine, Lithuania, Finland, Cyprus, Croatia, Ireland and Luxembourg were also chosen to advance to the final.

In the first semi-final, which was broadcast live in Portugal on RTP1, 15 songs competed for ten places. Poland, Iceland, Moldova, Azerbaijan and Australia were left out of the final.

This year, 37 countries participate in the Eurovision Song Contest, but only 26 reach the final: the ten chosen today, ten that will be selected on Thursday, in the second semi-final, and the so-called ‘Big Five’ (France, Germany, Spain , United Kingdom and Italy) and the host country.

Although they were not in competition, as they entered directly into the final, in today’s semi-final the themes from Germany, the United Kingdom and Sweden were also presented.

Today’s show, which was hosted by Swedish actress Malin Akerman and Swedish television presenter Petre Mede, opened with a performance by participants from previous editions of the competition: Cypriot Eleni Foureira, with “Fuego” (from the 2018 edition) , the Swedish Eric Saade, with “Popular” (2011), and the Spanish Chanel, with “SloMo” (2022).

The Swedish singer sang with his left hand wrapped in a ‘keffiyeh’, a scarf that is a symbol of Palestinian resistance, thus bringing to the stage the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which is marking this edition of the competition.

The conflict, which has lasted for decades, intensified after an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas in Israel, on October 7, which caused almost 1,200 deaths, with the country led by Benjamin Netanyahu responding with an offensive that caused more than 34,000 deaths. dead in the Gaza Strip, according to reports from both parties.

Several appeals were made by political representatives and European artists to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) for Israel’s participation in the contest to be vetoed.

Among the various appeals, at the end of March, representatives of nine countries, including Portugal, signed a letter in which they called for an “immediate and lasting ceasefire” in the war in Palestine and the return of all Israeli hostages.

In the letter, the artists began by stating that they recognize “the privilege of participating in Eurovision”, but that they do not feel “comfortable in remaining silent” given the “current situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, in particular in Gaza and Israel”.

In addition to the representative of Portugal, interpreters from Ireland, Norway, San Marino, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Denmark, Lithuania and Finland signed the letter.

At the time, the EBU recalled that the festival is an “apolitical” event. However, in 2022 it was decided to expel Russia from the competition following the invasion of Ukraine.

Meanwhile, on Sunday, Iolanda appeared on the ‘turquoise runway’ (where representatives from all countries parade, thus marking the beginning of the competition’s live shows), in Malmö, wearing a dress from a Palestinian brand and her nails painted. with the pattern of the ‘keffiyeh’, a scarf that is a symbol of Palestinian resistance.

Israel was the first non-European country to participate in the music competition, in 1973, and has won four times, including with transgender singer Dana International, in 1998.

Portugal participated in the Eurovision Song Contest for the first time in 1964, having, however, missed five editions (in 1970, 2000, 2002, 2013 and 2016). Between 2004 and 2007, inclusive, and in 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2019, Portugal failed to reach the final.

Portugal won the Eurovision Song Contest for the first and only time in 2017, with the song “Love for both”, performed by Salvador Sobral and composed by Luísa Sobral. Following the victory, Lisbon hosted the competition the following year.

Last year, Portugal came in 23rd place in the Eurovision Song Contest, with Mimicat and the song “Ai Coração”.