Cyprus Times

Greece in First Eurovision Semi-Final, Cyprus in Second

Published January 12, 2026, 21:02
Greece in First Eurovision Semi-Final, Cyprus in Second

Greece has been drawn to compete in the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest, while Cyprus will perform in the second. The draw, which took place in Vienna, determines the order of appearance for the countries in the semi-finals scheduled for May 12th and 14th, respectively. The first semi-final will also feature representatives from Montenegro, Estonia, Georgia, Portugal, San Marino, Croatia, Sweden, Poland, Belgium, Lithuania, Serbia, Finland, Moldova, and Israel. The second semi-final includes Albania, Denmark, Armenia, Romania, Switzerland, Norway, Azerbaijan, Luxembourg, Malta, Bulgaria, Australia, Ukraine, Czech Republic, and Latvia. The combination of jury votes and public voting results will select the ten songs from each semi-final to advance to the final, which will be held on May 16th. Austria, as the previous year's winner, and the "Big Five" countries (France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom) have automatic qualification to the final. Spain has withdrawn from the competition, along with Ireland, Iceland, the Netherlands, and Slovenia, due to Israel's participation. Juries return to the semi-finals this year, with an expanded composition and the inclusion of new members aged 18-25.