Countries that had planned to participate in 2020 and would have automatically qualified for the final Countries that had planned to participate in 2020 and would have competed in the semi-finals Countries that had participated in the past but did not plan to participate in 2020
Broadcasters from forty-one countries would have participated in the contest;Bulgaria andUkraine would have returned after their absence from the 2019 contest, whileHungary andMontenegro had confirmed their non-participation after taking part in the previous edition. All 41 competing songs and artists were confirmed by the participating broadcasters by early March 2020.
Following the cancellation, the EBU began discussions of potential carryovers for the2021 contest, such as the host venue, the songs, and artists, with the participating broadcasters. In place of the cancelled contest, the EBU, NPO, NOS, and AVROTROS organised a non-competitive replacement show,Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light, to showcase the selected entries on 16 May, the day of the planned final. The Dutch broadcasters remained the hosts of the 2021 contest on 18, 20, and 22 May 2021 in the same venue in Rotterdam, however, the songs selected for the 2020 contest were not eligible for 2021.
Preparations for the 2020 contest began on 19 May 2019, immediately after the Netherlands won the 2019 contest.Jon Ola Sand, the executive supervisor of the contest on behalf of theEuropean Broadcasting Union (EBU), handedAVROTROS, the Dutch participating broadcaster, a stack of documents and aUSB drive with tools to begin the work needed to host the next contest, during the winner's press conference inTel Aviv, Israel.[2] AVROTROS was to co-organise the event with sister broadcasterNederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) and their parent public broadcasting organisation,Nederlandse Publieke Omroep (NPO).[3][4]
Locations of the candidate cities: the chosen host city is marked in blue. The shortlisted cities are marked in green, while the eliminated cities are marked in red.
Already prior to the 2019 contest, whenbookmakers expected Duncan Laurence to win, several Dutch cities, includingAmsterdam,The Hague andMaastricht, announced their intent to host the contest should the Netherlands win.[5] A spokesperson for NPO also stated that the broadcaster had a rough plan for how they would select the host city in the event of a Dutch victory.[6] When Laurence won the contest, mayors of various municipalities immediately began lobbyingMark Rutte, thePrime Minister of the Netherlands, through text messages.[7] Public figures, including Laurence,Esther Hart,Getty Kaspers andAndré Rieu, voiced their support for their respective favourite host cities.[8]
The hosting broadcasters launched the bidding process on 29 May 2019.[9] In the first phase of this process, cities were to formally apply to bid.[10] Nine cities—Amsterdam,Arnhem,Breda,'s-Hertogenbosch, The Hague,Leeuwarden, Maastricht,Rotterdam, andUtrecht—did so and received a list of criteria they and their venues needed to meet on 12 June 2019.[10] Initially,Zwolle had also considered launching a bid to host the event but the city ultimately decided against doing so because it deemed its venue, theIJsselhallen, to have unsuitable proportions.[11]Enschede could have been a potential host city asEnschede Airport Twente considered bidding to host the event in its eleventhhangar, however, it later learned that Enschede's municipality executive board had decided against financially supporting such a bid.[12][13]
From this point on, these nine cities had until 10 July 2019 to compile their bid books to demonstrate their capabilities to host the contest.[10] Further cities were still able to join in on the bidding race by applying prior to the deadline.[10] During this period, four cities withdrew. Amsterdam could not host the contest because it was preoccupied with hosting other events during the contest's time frame.[14] Breda dropped out due to financial concerns.[15] Leeuwarden ceased bidding due to the insufficient height of the ceiling of itsWTC Expo.[16] The Hague dropped its bid because both of its potential venues were unsuitable for the event.[17] The localCars Jeans Stadion football stadium would have been large enough but lacked a roof, and installing such a roof would have made the bid financially unviable.[17] Its other option would have been spanning a tent over theMalieveld field, but after reviewing the hosting conditions, this option fell out of favour.[17] Following its withdrawal, The Hague turned to support Rotterdam's bid instead.[17]
The five remaining cities—Arnhem, 's-Hertogenbosch, Maastricht, Rotterdam, and Utrecht—delivered their finished bid books to a ceremonial event held inHilversum on 10 July 2019.[18] The hosting broadcasters reviewed the bids presented and on 16 July 2019 announced that it eliminated those for Arnhem, 's-Hertogenbosch and Utrecht, shortlisting only Maastricht and Rotterdam.[19] Utrecht was specifically eliminated because its proposal to span a tent over itsJaarbeurs offered limited possibilities for testing on location and had a questionable suitability for events like the Eurovision Song Contest,[20] while 's-Hertogenbosch was dropped due to an insufficient ceiling height in itsBrabanthallen and too few hotel rooms blocked for potential visitors of the contest.[21]
To review and discuss the location, venue and surrounding events for the remaining bids, NPO visited Maastricht on 17 July 2019 and Rotterdam on the following day.[22][23] By late July, additional visits to the two shortlisted cities were deemed necessary to review production logistics.[24] The EBU did not pay visits to either city.[25] Maastricht and Rotterdam were to hand in revised versions of their bid books by 9 August 2019 to add details involving the cities' social programmes, side-events and programme licensing.[26] A "concept agreement" was put before the organisers in both Maastricht and Rotterdam in August 2019.[27] While Rotterdam signed this agreement, the city council of Maastricht discussed and rejected it.[27] Within the same council session, it was also clarified that the MECC would not receive additional renovations.[27] On 30 August, Rotterdam was announced as the host city during a special broadcast onNPO 1 andNPO 2.[28][29]
Location of host venue (red) and other contest-related sites and events (blue)
The Eurovision Village would have been erected to serve as the official Eurovision Song Contest fan and sponsors' area during the events week. There, it would have been possible to watch performances by local artists, as well as the live shows broadcast from the main venue. The Binnenrotte was the planned location for the Village.[32] The Binnenrotte is one of the largest open spaces in the centre of Rotterdam. It is located in the heart of the city, next to some of Rotterdam's most famous architectural marvels, such as theMarkthal.
The EuroClub would have been the venue for the official after-parties and private performances by contest participants. Unlike the Eurovision Village, access to the EuroClub would be restricted to accredited fans, delegates, and press. It would have been located at the Maassilo. Maassilo is located on Rotterdam's waterfront at Maashaven Zuidzijde, a 10-minute drive from Rotterdam Ahoy.[33]
The "Golden Carpet" and Opening Ceremony events, where the contestants and their delegations present themselves in front of the accredited press and fans, would have taken place at theRotterdam Cruise Terminal on 10 May 2020.[34]
Eligibility for potential participation in the Eurovision Song Contest requires a national broadcaster withactive EBU membership capable of receiving the contest via theEurovision network and broadcasting it live nationwide. The EBU issued an invitation of participation in the contest to all active members. In contrast to previous years, associate memberSpecial Broadcasting Service (SBS) representingAustralia did not need an invitation for the 2020 contest, as it had previously been granted permission to participate at least until 2023.[35]
The EBU announced on 13 November 2019 that forty-one countries would participate in the contest, with Bulgaria and Ukraine returning after their absence from the 2019 contest, while Hungary and Montenegro opted not to participate, mostly due to financial reasons.[36] Following the cancellation of the contest, the participating broadcasters were given sole discretion on whether to retain the artists who would have participated in this edition for the following year,[37] but they were required to enter new songs in accordance with the contest's rules.[38]
Eurovision Song Contest 2020 selected participants[36][39]
Active EBU member broadcasters inAndorra,Bosnia and Herzegovina,Hungary,Monaco,Slovakia, andTurkey confirmed non-participation prior to the announcement of the participants list by the EBU.[51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58] An inside source attributed Hungary's non-participation to a rise ofanti-LGBTQ+ sentiment in the country;[59] however, this was denied by the Hungarian broadcasterMTVA.[60]Montenegro, while initially confirming its participation, later reconsidered the option due to "modest results" and financial issues, and the country did not appear on the final list of participants.[61][62][63][64][65][66] Calls onLuxembourg to return to the contest after its continued non-participation since1993 (including fromAnne-Marie David, who won the contest forLuxembourg in 1973), resulted in a fan-led petition directed to the broadcasterRTL and theChamber of Deputies,[67] and in a second petition opened by the Chamber of Deputies itself;[68] however, RTL also ruled out participation in the 2020 contest prior to the official announcement by the EBU.[69]
Despite EBU associate member in Kazakhstan's previous participation in theJunior Eurovision Song Contest,Jon Ola Sand, the executive supervisor of the contest, stated that their participation in the main contest needed to be discussed by thereference group.[70] The EBU stated in September 2019 that it had no intention to invite Kazakhstan to the 2020 contest.[71]
Despite attempts by the Kosovan broadcasterRTK to obtain full EBU membership in order to debut at the 2020 contest,[72] at the EBU's 82nd General Assembly in June 2019, it was decided to keepITU membership as a requirement to join the EBU, thus making it impossible for RTK to join the EBU in time for the 2020 contest.[73] Liechtensteiner broadcaster1 FL TV, despite previous attempts to become an EBU member, halted its plans after director Peter Kölbel's unexpected death, and did not resume them due to the lack of sufficient funds and of government support; thus it ruled out debuting in 2020.[74]
The Eurovision Song Contest 2020 would have been a co-production between three related Dutch television organisations —Nederlandse Publieke Omroep (NPO),Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) andAVROTROS — of which each assumed a different role.[3]Sietse Bakker [nl] and Inge van de Weerd would have served asexecutive producers, while Emilie Sickinghe and Jessica Stam would have served as deputy executive producers.[75] In August 2019, Marnix Kaart andMarc Pos were announced as the directors of the three live shows,[76] as well as Gerben Bakker as head of show.[77]Cornald Maas would have been creative advisor.[78]Jon Ola Sand, the contest's executive supervisor, would keep his role as he had done since 2011, though he planned to step down following the 2020 edition.[79]
The contest's slogan, "Open Up", was unveiled on 24 October 2019.[80] The official logo and branding was unveiled on 28 November 2019. Designed by Clever°Franke, it is "an abstract representation of the flag colours of the 41 countries participating in 2020 by first appearance to the contest".[81]
The contest would have been hosted by three presenters: actress and television hostChantal Janzen, singer and commentator for the contestJan Smit, and singerEdsilia Rombley, who represented theNetherlands in 1998 and2007.[82][83] Beauty vloggerNikkie de Jager (NikkieTutorials) would have been the presenter of the contest's online content, including a behind-the-scenesYouTube series to be recorded with the participating artists.[84] She would have also reported from the "Golden Carpet" during the opening ceremony and was scheduled to make an appearance in all three live shows.[85]Roos Moggré andAndrew Makkinga [nl] would have moderated the contest'spress conferences.[86]
The stage design for the 2020 contest was revealed on 2 December 2019. The design was inspired by the slogan "Open Up" and the typical Dutch flat landscape. The Eurovision stage was designed by German stage designerFlorian Wieder, who also designed the stages for the contests in 2011–12, 2015, and 2017–19. Unlike the previous contest, thegreen room was placed inside the main performance venue.[87]
The second semi-final would have opened with a performance bybreakdancer Redouan "Redo" Ait Chitt. The final would have been opened with the traditional flag parade, introducing all twenty-six finalists, accompanied by music produced by 15-year-old DJ Pieter Gabriel.[88] Asymphony orchestra of sixty-five young musicians from across the Netherlands, specifically formed for this occasion, was scheduled to perform in the final, together with DJAfrojack and singerGlennis Grace, the latter of whom represented theNetherlands in 2005.[89][90] This interval act would have also featured forty dancers and a twenty-five-piecegospel choir.[89]
The Spanish head of delegation revealed on 22 October 2019 that the EBU was consulting with delegations on potential changes to the voting system.[92] The Greek Head of Delegation revealed on 30 October 2019 that the majority of delegations (80%) voted in favour of maintaining the current voting system.[93]
Pre-qualified for the final but also voting in the first semi-final
Participating countries in the second semi-final
Pre-qualified for the final but also voting in the second semi-final
The draw to determine the participating countries' semi-finals took place on 28 January 2020 at 16:10CET, at theRotterdam City Hall.[94] The thirty-five semi-finalists were divided over five pots, based on historical voting patterns as calculated by the contest's official televoting partner Digame. The purpose of drawing from different pots was to reduce the chance of "bloc voting" and to increase suspense in the semi-finals. The draw also determined which semi-final each of the six automatic qualifiers – host country the Netherlands and "Big Five" countriesFrance,Germany,Italy,Spain and theUnited Kingdom – would broadcast and vote in. The ceremony was hosted by contest presenters Chantal Janzen, Jan Smit and Edsilia Rombley, and included the passing of the host city insignia fromTzipi Brand Frank [he], then-deputy mayor of previous host cityTel Aviv, toAhmed Aboutaleb, then-mayor of Rotterdam.[94]
The concept of the 2020 postcards was based on the "Open Up" theme of the contest. Each artist would have visited a different part of the Netherlands and connected with locals by participating in a Dutch activity, tradition or hobby.[95]
The first semi-final would have taken place on 12 May 2020 at 21:00 (CEST). Seventeen countries would have participated in the first semi-final. These countries, plusGermany,Italy, and theNetherlands, would have voted in this semi-final.[96]
Planned participants of the first semi-final[97][c]
The second semi-final would have taken place on 14 May 2020 at 21:00 (CEST). Eighteen countries would have participated in the second semi-final. These countries, plusFrance,Spain, and theUnited Kingdom, would have voted in this semi-final.[96]
Planned participants of the second semi-final[98][c]
The final would have taken place on 16 May 2020 at 21:00 (CEST). Twenty-six countries would have participated in the final, composed of the host country, the "Big Five", and the ten best-ranked entries of each of the two semi-finals. All forty-one participating countries would have voted in the final.
Before the contest's cancellation, broadcasters had started confirming their broadcasting plans and who would provide commentary either on-location or remotely at their studios during the contest. The role of the commentators was to add insight to the participating entries and the provision of voting information.
Planned broadcasters and commentators in participating countries
Thespread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) fromWuhan, China, to other countries around the world in late 2019 and early 2020 raised concerns and the potential impact over the organisation and staging of the contest.[120] On 6 March, co-host broadcaster NPO stated, "Eurovision organisers would follow the advice of health authorities in deciding what form the event, due to be held on 12–16 May, would take."[121] In March, authorities in Denmark urged the cancellation of events with more than 1,000 spectators to limit the spread of the virus. This resulted in theDanish national final being held withno live audience.[122] Representatives from Sweden, Finland, Israel, Switzerland, Italy, and Greece attended the meeting of the heads of delegation on 9 March remotely.[123] The contest's executive supervisorJon Ola Sand also attended the meeting remotely, due to travel restrictions being placed on EBU staff until 13 March after an employee contracted the virus.[124][125]
Several pre-parties – promotional events which are held across Europe in the lead-up to the contest – were also impacted due to the emerging pandemic. These included thePrePartyES, planned for 10–11 April in Madrid and was eventually modified to an online-only format, where artists performed at home in aYouTube concert;[126][127] and three pre-parties that were cancelled:Israel Calling, a pre-party planned in Tel Aviv;[128]Eurovision in Concert, a pre-party planned in Amsterdam;[129][130] and theLondon Eurovision Party.[131][132][133] The pandemic also affected pre-contest activities of several competing artists.Eden Alene, the Israeli representative, revealed that she would not travel to the Netherlands to film her postcard as a precautionary measure; the Israeli broadcasterKan stated it would try to find another way to film her postcard.[134] The Lithuanian representativesThe Roop also cancelled both their travel plans to film their postcard and participation in the London and Amsterdam pre-parties.[135] The Bulgarian representativeVictoria also cancelled her participation in the London and Amsterdam pre-parties.[136]
Ultimately, the contest itself was cancelled as a result of the pandemic and the uncertainty surrounding it; this decision was announced on 18 March 2020.[137] On the same day, the EBU explained the reasons for which the alternative options that had been considered – postponement of the show, show without audience and remote competition – were discarded. Postponement was impossible because at that time it was unknown when the pandemic would finish and also because the winning country would not have enough time to organise the event the following year. The idea of staging a show without a live audience was also impracticable because, regardless of audience participation, the presence of production crews, delegations and relevant personnel was needed, which would constitute a breach ofsocial distancing guidelines at the time. The possibility of organising a remote competition was also rejected because it would have undermined the tradition and spirit of the event, in which all contestants are given equal opportunity by performing on the same stage.[137] By then, the Dutch government had decided to prohibit all gatherings with more than 100 attendees until further notice.[138] The contest's reference group explored the option of letting the artists selected for 2020 compete in the following year instead, and ultimately left this decision to each participating broadcaster.[137][38] A decision was made on 20 March 2020 that, in accordance with thecontest's rules, which disqualify songs released publicly before 1 September of the preceding calendar year, none of the 2020 songs would be eligible to compete in the 2021 contest.[38]
The Ahoy Arena itself, with most events and gatherings in the Netherlands prohibited until at least 1 September 2020,[139][140] served as a temporary care facility to cover the nationwide shortage of hospital beds.[141][142] Construction of the stage would have started on 6 April.[143]
Alexander H., a Swedish individual residing inStrassen, Luxembourg and alleged member of theneo-Nazi groupThe Base, was arrested on 22 February 2020 and accused of manufacturing explosives at his home and plottingterrorist attacks.[144][145] On 9 July 2025, during H's trial, Luxembourgish prosecutors revealed that the defendant had planned an attack on the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, using explosives andchlorine gas, with the help of an unnamed Dutch accomplice. The plot was laid out in a document onGoogle Docs titled "Fun time for Eurovision 2020 – For a better and less over-accepting future".[146] Dutch media reported that while thePublic Prosecution Service and thepolice were aware of the plot, they did not inform NPO and thegovernment of Rotterdam about it.[147][148][149]
The EBU and the host broadcasters worked on a non-competitive replacement show,Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light, after the contest's cancellation. FromHilversum'sStudio 21, the show was broadcast live on 16 May 2020, the date the contest's final was planned to take place, with Chantal Janzen, Jan Smit, and Edsilia Rombley serving as hosts.[150] 45 countries broadcast the show, including all of the countries that would have participated.[151]
The EBU announced on 30 April 2020 thatEurovision Song Celebration 2020 would be released as a replacement for the semi-finals on the contest's officialYouTube channel. The shows, presented byJanouk Kelderman and premiered on 12 and 14 May, honoured all 41 participants and their songs in a non-competitive format. The first episode showcased the participants of the first semi-final, as well as those of host country the Netherlands and two of the "Big Five", Germany and Italy, who would also have voted in this semi-final. The second episode featured the participants of the second semi-final, as well as those of France, Spain and the United Kingdom, who would also have voted in this semi-final. The running order was determined by the producers of the show as if the contest were actually held, while fans were asked to contribute to the show by sending videoclips of their favourite entries.[152][153]
The contest's official YouTube channel broadcastEurovision Home Concerts every Friday from 3 April to 15 May 2020, featuring the planned artists for 2020 and past entrants performing their entries, as well as one of their favourite other entries from their homes.[154] For their cover, the act gave a shortlist of two to four entries for fans to choose in a poll onTwitter orInstagram, and covered the song (or songs if there was a tie) that won the poll.[155]
Upon hearing about the contest's cancellation, journalist Rob Holley launched an initiative to watch a past contest on YouTube every week, eventually giving it the titleEurovisionAgain.[156] The initiative quickly became popular, so the EBU itself decided to partake. Every Saturday at 21:00CEST, the Eurovision YouTube channel would re-broadcast a final of a previous contest, revealed by theEurovisionAgain team 15 minutes before the start.[157] Contests prior to 2004 are available for a limited time. The initiative was generally received as a welcome distraction for fans. On Twitter, #EurovisionAgain regularly became a trending topic and received positive reactions from past participants.[158] As part of the initiative, Holley collected over £24,700 for charity.[159]
From 18 July 2020, a second run ofEurovisionAgain began with a replay of the1999 contest, and aired every third Saturday of the month leading up to the 2021 selection season. It ended with a special edition where the 26 most popular songs that did not qualify for the final, one from each country, as chosen via the official Eurovision social media handles, were streamed and put to a fan-vote.Iceland's 2016 entry, "Hear Them Calling" byGreta Salóme, won the fan-vote.[160]
Aside fromEurope Shine a Light, broadcasters were left to make plans to fill the rest of the gaps themselves. Most broadcasters provided their television audience with Eurovision-related replacement programming.[161][162] Examples include holding an alternative contest by offering people the chance to listen to the 2020 entries and vote for their favourites,[163][164][165] with some countries holding a ranking of (their own) songs throughout Eurovision history,[161][166][167][168] and re-broadcasts of pre-existing Eurovision specials[169][170] and previous contests which are significant for their country, such as the contest they last won or hosted.[170][171][172]
Big Night In was organised and broadcast by the Australian broadcasterSpecial Broadcasting Service (SBS) and aired on 16 May 2020. Australians voted online for their favourite 2020 song (minus Montaigne's "Don't Break Me"), and over three hours, the songs was counted down from 40 to 1, with the top twenty songs being playing in full. Iceland's Daði og Gagnamagnið were crowned winners with "Think About Things".[173]
Der kleine Song Contest (English: The Little Song Contest) was organised and broadcast by the Austrian broadcasterÖsterreichischer Rundfunk (ORF). The competition consisted of three semi-finals between 14 and 18 April 2020 and a final on 18 April 2020, and was hosted byAndi Knoll. All shows were broadcast on the television channelORF 1, as well as on the streaming platform ORF-TVthek.
Eurovision 2020 – das deutsche Finale (English: Eurovision 2020 - The German Final) was organised and broadcast by the German broadcasterNorddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The competition consisted of a pre-qualifying round on 9 May 2020 and a final on 16 May 2020.
Okkar 12 stig (English: Our 12 Points) was organised and broadcast by the Icelandic broadcasterRíkisútvarpið (RÚV).
Pesem Evrovizije: Najboljših 25 (English: Eurovision Song Contest: Top 25) was organised and broadcast by the Slovenian broadcasterRTV Slovenija. The ranking of all Slovenian Eurovision entries (excluding the songs that representedYugoslavia), decided by over 30,000 online votes, was revealed on the show.[175] Slovenian artists and presenters associated with Eurovision gave their opinions on the 25 songs, and interviews were held with several past Slovenian participants.[166] During the broadcast, it was revealed that Ana Soklič, who had been selected to represent Slovenia in 2020, would remain as the country's entrant in 2021.[176]
Sveriges 12:a (English: "Sweden's 12 [points]") was organised and broadcast by the Swedish broadcasterSveriges Television (SVT). The competition consisted of a pre-qualifying round on 9 May 2020, hosted byChrister Björkman andDavid Sundin, and a final on 14 May 2020, hosted by Christer Björkman andSarah Dawn Finer. Both shows were broadcast live onSVT1, as well as on the streaming platformSVT Play. The winning entry – the hypothetical recipient of Sweden's 12 points – was the Icelandic entry "Think About Things".
OGAE, an organisation of over forty Eurovision Song Contest fan clubs across Europe and beyond, conducts an annual voting poll. After all votes were cast, the top-ranked entry in the 2020 poll was Lithuania's "On Fire" byThe Roop; the top five results are shown below.[177][178][179]
Eurovision: A Tribute to the Artists and Songs 2020 is the officialcompilation album of the contest, put together by the European Broadcasting Union and containing all 41 songs that would have taken part in the competition. It was originally scheduled to be released byUniversal Music Group physically and digitally on 17 April 2020 but was delayed to 8 May,[180] and later to 15 May.[181]
^On behalf of the German public broadcasting consortiumARD[40]
^abThe running order was determined by the producers as if the contest were held and presented in the alternative programmeEurovision Song Celebration 2020, held as a replacement of semi-finals.
^Netflix, anover-the-topvideo on demand service, signed an agreement with the EBU in July 2019 that would have allowed it to distribute all three shows of the 2020 contest on its service in the United States.[119]
^"CG ne ide na Eurosong 2020" [Montenegro does not go to Eurovision Song Contest 2020.] (in Montenegrin).RTCG. 15 November 2019.Archived from the original on 15 November 2019. Retrieved15 November 2019.
^"'Open Up' to Eurovision 2020". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 24 October 2019.Archived from the original on 24 October 2019. Retrieved24 October 2019.
^"Klubi-info: Mikä ihmeen OGAE?" [The club info: What on Earth is OGAE?].Euroviisuklubi (in Finnish). OGAE Finland. 5 June 2012. Archived fromthe original on 27 January 2012. Retrieved17 June 2012.
^"2020 OGAE Poll".OGAE Spain (in Spanish). 16 May 2020. Archived fromthe original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved24 May 2022.
