The Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) is much more than just three shows on television. It's one big party, at least in Liverpool. If you like, you can party almost around the clock for two weeks in the city, which has produced more number 1 hits than Detroit and Memphis. At queer parades, in the Euroclub, which was able to boast several ESC winners – the Irishwoman Linda Martin (1992), the Swede Charlotte Perrelli (1999) and the Austrian Conchita Wurst (2014) – or even daily at concerts on the big stage in the Eurovision Village.
Peter-Philipp Schmitt
Editor in the "Germany and the World" department.
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The supposed village was built in Liverpool at Pier Head, an old port facility. In the middle of it all are the four mushroom heads, weighing more than a ton, made of bronze and larger than life. Hardly any visitor leaves the city without a selfie with John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. The lifeless Beatles are also one of the main attractions for ESC fans, also because a few steps away is the big stage on which last year's winners of the ESC opened the two-week Song Contest on the very first opening day, May 5th: the Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra.
Ukraine sets the tone, so to speak, in Liverpool, because without it there would be no Eurovision in the port city. Jamala, ESC winner in 2016, and the group Go_A, which finished fifth in Rotterdam in 2021, have also sung in the Village. But a detour to the place where the White Star Line shipping company was once based was and is also worthwhile in other respects. She gained notoriety above all through her passenger ship Titanic. Jake Shears of the Scissor Sisters was there on Saturday, but Sophie Ellis-Bextor won't sing until Friday.
Otherwise, however, the village does not live up to its name. It's all about eating and drinking. Burger & Fries, Coffee and Pizza, Wraps and Chicken. After all, they are also available "plant-based", i.e. in vegan form. Of course, the advertising partners of the ESC are not to be missed, Booking.com and Baileys. The security precautions are great, they have to be – unfortunately. However, the fact that small water bottles are also taken at the entrance annoys many visitors. It almost seems as if the hosts only want to generate more sales within the cordoned-off area, where drinks can be bought for a lot of money.
Nothing is offered to Liverpool in Liverpool
You won't find a little culture in this place that doesn't just take place on the big stage. Just a few years ago, the country and its people and the host city presented themselves in many facets at the respective Eurovision Villages. Here in Liverpool there is nothing on offer about Liverpool, not a single stall with information about the city, its traditions and its history. Only next to the exit and very small opens up a village within the village, with beautiful wooden stalls. This is where Ukraine presents itself and shows how it could be on the empty square next door with its food stalls: handicrafts from various brands (I Am Volya) are represented as well as – yes – the country's cuisine, with borscht and vareniki.
The fact that the ESC weeks are slowly coming to an end can also be easily seen from the fact that the e-mail inbox is filled with statistics and analyses. Who, for example, dominates social media and streaming services? Better Collective evaluated it this week and found out that they are not necessarily the favorites from Finland with singer Käärijä and Sweden with singer Loreen. She is far ahead on Youtube with her song "Tattoo", ahead of the Israeli Nora Kirel with "Unicorn" and the French La Zarra with "Évidement". But the Italian Marco Mengoni with "Due Vite", the already eliminated Maltese The Busker with "Dance (Our Own Party)" and the Norwegian Alessandra with "Queen Of Kings" have gained the most since April 28th.
Loreen has the best chances
Mengoni also has the most followers (2.3 million) on Instagram, followed by Kirel (1.44 million) and Cypriot Andrew Lambrou (480,000). Since 28 April, Kirel, Loreen and Käärijä have made the most gains. On Spotify, Loreen, Mengoni and Alessandra are at the top, on Tiktok it is Reiley from Denmark (10.8 million followers), Nora Kirel from Israel (962,000 followers) and Andrew Lambrou from Cyprus (701,000 followers).
According to the digital marketing agency Evoluted, it is easy to deduce from the history of the ESC who has to win this year. Because in the majority of cases, the Song Contest was won by an individual, not a group. They were mostly women, and it was almost always pop. Rock was only able to win twice, which is not too good news for our German participants, the glam rock band Lord of the Lost from St. Pauli and their "Blood & Glitter".
In fact, more non-English songs (37) have won the ESC than English titles (32). And political songs were also less well received than love songs. If you make sense of all this, then this year it clearly comes down to Loreen, who will win 44 percent of the Song Contest. The formula and percentage match the odds of the betting shops almost exactly. But not all final evenings are evening yet. It's only on Saturday.