Who was lucky and who was unlucky? It’s time to start placing your bets on the outcome of the semi-finals. Today, the 36 semi-finalists were drawn into the two semi-finals, and the so-called Big 5 countries + host country Israel were given a semi-final to vote in.
In order to reduce countries just voting for their neighbours, the 36 semi-finalists were beforehand allocated into six pots from where they were then today drawn into the semi-finals, into first or second half, respectively. With only two semi-finals, it is however impossible to make it totally fair. It is still very much a matter of luck – and today, we saw who had the luck this year, and who didn’t.
When all participating countries have submitted their entries to the European Broadcasting Union, the producers will, in a closed forum, determine the actual running order – within the first and second half’s drawn today.
Semi-final 1 – 14th of May
Voting in semi-final one (aside from the participating countries) are Spain, France and Israel.
| First half | Second half |
| Slovenia | Estonia |
| Belarus | Portugal |
| Czech Republic | San Marino |
| Montenegro | Iceland |
| Cyprus | Georgia |
| Serbia | Australia |
| Finland | Belgium |
| Poland | Ukraine |
| Hungary | Greece |
Semi-final 2 – 16th of May
Voting in semi-final two (aside from the participating countries) are Germany, Italy and United Kingdom.
| First half | Second half |
| Switzerland | Albania |
| Sweden | Azerbaijan |
| Ireland | FYR Macedonia |
| Austria | Norway |
| Moldova | Russia |
| Latvia | The Netherlands |
| Romania | Croatia |
| Denmark | Lithuania |
| Armenia | Malta |
Swiss broadcaster SRF had requested to take part in the second semi-final due to an important Icehockey match on the day of the first semi-final. A wish that was granted by the EBU Reference Group.
Pots
1: Albania, Croatia, F.Y.R. Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia
2: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden
3: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine
4: Australia, Ireland, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Portugal
5: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Hungary, The Netherlands, Switzerland
6: Cyprus, Greece, Malta, Moldova, Romania, San Marino
