Betting on Eurovision: Who Will be the Next Winner

Added: April 20, 2023

It is time once again for Eurovision, Europe’s annual song and dance extravaganza, but also a fiercely-fought competition — and a serious betting opportunity.

Betting on Eurovision may seem like a niche activity, but it’s actually a thriving industry. Across Europe, millions of pounds are bet on the song contest every year, with plenty treating the race for the trophy with the same enthusiasm sporting fans treat the UEFA Champions League. And just like any major sporting event, there’s a lively betting market around the outcome.

The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual song festival that was started in 1956 by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) as a way to bring together the European nations through music. With 161 million people watching the live shows as of 2022, it truly has a global appeal.

But it’s more than just a music festival — a good song and performance are not enough to win the contest. The ESC is always spiced with politics, which makes the outcome harder to predict. The concept of ‘neighbourly voting’ — neighbour countries forming alliances and giving points to each other — makes it even more challenging. For example, Cyprus keeps voting for Greece and Norway is voting for Sweden.

This is precisely what makes Eurovision more exciting to bet on. Since the outcome is hard to predict, there’s a potential to earn a big casino payout.

Winner odds for 2023

This year marks the 67th Eurovision Song Contest — and the United Kingdom, last year’s runner-up, has been chosen to host Eurovision after the previous winner Ukraine was unable to stage the song contest.

The two semi-finals kick off on May 9, and the final takes place on May 13. But according to the Google trends report, every year, there is a growing sense of excited anticipation ahead of the annual singing tournament. In fact, people start actively searching for information related to Eurovision in March, two months before the event kicks off, with Malta, Iceland, Cyprus, Lithuania, and Greece showing the most interest.

All 37 songs competing in Eurovision 2023 have been released, and industry-leading bookmakers have already released the odds. The bookies are currently favouring Sweden — Loreen’s victory is played at odds between 1.80 and 1.86 (a 39% winning chance). The singer previously won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2012 with her song Euphoria. Finland and Ukraine are the second and third favourites. However, this all very well might change on May 13.

Eurovision odds: How accurate are they?

Looking at the betting odds and assessing the probability of the outcomes based on these odds can help determine whether a wager is worth pursuing, but it is not a perfect indicator. Bookmakers set the odds based on a variety of factors, including past performances, the quality of the song, and the popularity of the artist.

However, several unpredictable factors can impact the final results of the competition. The quality of the live performance, the staging and presentation, and how the song resonates with viewers cannot be predicted.

The amount that can be won when betting on Eurovision varies depending on several factors, including the odds, the bet type, the wager amount, as well as the outcome of the competition. In general, the larger the wager and the higher the odds, the greater the potential payout. The betting platforms are typically perfectly tailored for fast casino payouts, so Eurovision fans can cash out their winnings quickly and hassle-free.

Betting options

Betting on Eurovision is not just about predicting the winner. The large popularity of the contest has helped the industry grow and allowed bettors to place a wager on a whole host of markets.

First, participants come to the continent’s annual singing tournament to compete in two semi-finals, with the top performers from each advancing to the finals. Hence, the ‘who will make it to the final’ bet is the most popular bet during the semi-finals, where Eurovision fans can bet on whether a certain country will qualify.

In the grand final, after all of the artists have performed, each country assigns points to other countries’ musical performances. So there’s an opportunity to bet on how many points a country will score. The amount of points is based on a combination of the votes from a panel of judges and the votes from the viewers who vote for their favourite performances after all songs have been performed.

In addition, nearly all bookies offer the traditional bet types such as who will be in the top 10, top 5, and top 3 in the final — this is the second most popular bet. Head-to-head is also quite common, it’s placed on one country performing better than another. For example, you can bet that the United Kingdom will end up higher than Portugal or vice versa.

What makes it even more exciting is that there is a great variety of bookmakers in the UK that offer lucrative casino bonuses. A free bet is the most popular one – Eurovision fans can bet on the song contest without risking their own money.

Who will win this year?

Trying to predict results is notoriously difficult, especially when it comes to something as subjective as judging. You need to look at the performance, check the odds, and consider the voting patterns in order to stand a much better chance. Whether that’s enough to predict the winner and beat the bookie, we’ll have to wait and see.

Mr. Gamble