The Eurovision Song Contest 2008 was the 53rd edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Belgrade, Serbia, following the country's victory at the 2007 contest with the song "Molitva" by Marija Šerifović. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Radio Television of Serbia (RTS), the contest was held at the Belgrade Arena, and (for the first time) consisted of two semi-finals on 20 and 22 May, and a final on 24 May 2008. The three live shows were presented by Serbian television presenter Jovana Janković and musician Željko Joksimović.
Forty-three countries participated in the contest, the highest ever number of participants in the contest beating the record of forty-two set the year before. Azerbaijan and San Marino participated for the first time, while Austria did not participate, mainly due to questions on the semi-final organisation as well as the politicization of the contest.
The winner was Russia with the song "Believe", performed by Dima Bilan who wrote it with Jim Beanz. Ukraine, Greece, Armenia and Norway rounded out the top five. Armenia achieved their best result to date this year. Of the "Big Four" countries Spain placed the highest, finishing sixteenth, while the United Kingdom ended up in last place for the second time in their Eurovision history, after 2003.
The official website, eurovision.tv, streamed national finals for this year's contest live on ESCTV for the first time. Furthermore, for the first time the winner has been awarded the perpetual glass microphone trophy of the Eurovision Song Contest. The trophy is a handmade piece of sandblasted glass in the shape of a 1950s microphone.
Results[]
First semi-final[]
Countries in moccasin are the qualifiers and the country in cyan is the back-up jury qualifier.
| Rank | Country | EBU member station | Artist(s) | Song | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Greece | ERT | Kalomira | "Secret Combination" | 156 |
| 2 | Armenia | AMPTV | Sirusho | "Qélé, Qélé" (Քելե Քելե) | 139 |
| 3 | Russia | VGTRK | Dima Bilan | "Believe" | 135 |
| 4 | Norway | NRK | Maria | "Hold On Be Strong" | 106 |
| 5 | Israel | IBA | Boaz | "The Fire in Your Eyes" | 104 |
| 6 | Azerbaijan | İTV | Elnur and Samir | "Day After Day" | 96 |
| 7 | Romania | TVR | Nico and Vlad | "Pe-o margine de lume" | 94 |
| 8 | Finland | YLE | Teräsbetoni | "Missä miehet ratsastaa" | 79 |
| 9 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | BHRT | Laka | "Pokušaj" | 72 |
| 10 | Poland | TVP | Isis Gee | "For Life" | 42 |
| 11 | Slovenia | RTVSLO | Rebeka Dremelj | "Vrag naj vzame" | 36 |
| 12 | Moldova | TRM | Geta Burlacu | "A Century of Love" | 36 |
| 13 | Netherlands | NOS | Hind | "Your Heart Belongs to Me" | 27 |
| 14 | Montenegro | RTCG | Stefan Filipović | "Zauvijek volim te" (Заувијек волим те) | 23 |
| 15 | Ireland | RTÉ | Dustin the Turkey | "Irelande Douze Pointe" | 22 |
| 16 | Andorra | RTVA | Gisela | "Casanova" | 22 |
| 17 | Belgium | VRT | Ishtar | "O Julissi" | 16 |
| 18 | Estonia | ERR | Kreisiraadio | "Leto svet" (Лето свет) | 8 |
| 19 | San Marino | SMRTV | Miodio | "Complice" | 5 |
Second semi-final[]
Countries in moccasin are the qualifiers and the country in cyan is the back-up jury qualifier.
| Rank | Country | EBU member station | Artist(s) | Song | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ukraine | NTU | Ani Lorak | "Shady Lady" | 152 |
| 2 | Portugal | RTP | Vânia Fernandes | "Senhora do mar (negras águas)" | 120 |
| 3 | Denmark | DR | Simon Mathew | "All Night Long" | 112 |
| 4 | Croatia | HRT | Kraljevi ulice and 75 Cents | "Romanca" | 112 |
| 5 | Georgia | GPB | Diana Gurtskaya | "Peace Will Come" | 107 |
| 6 | Latvia | LTV | Pirates of the Sea | "Wolves of the Sea" | 86 |
| 7 | Turkey | TRT | Mor ve Ötesi | "Deli" | 85 |
| 8 | Iceland | RÚV | Euroband | "This Is My Life" | 68 |
| 9 | Albania | RTSH | Olta Boka | "Zemrën e lamë peng" | 67 |
| 10 | Macedonia | MRT | Tamara, Vrčak and Adrijan | "Let Me Love You" | 64 |
| 11 | Bulgaria | BNT | Deep Zone and Balthazar | "DJ, Take Me Away" | 56 |
| 12 | Sweden | SVT | Charlotte Perrelli | "Hero" | 54 |
| 13 | Switzerland | SRG SSR | Paolo Meneguzzi | "Era stupendo" | 47 |
| 14 | Malta | PBS | Morena | "Vodka" | 38 |
| 15 | Cyprus | CyBC | Evdokia Kadi | "Femme Fatale" | 36 |
| 16 | Lithuania | LRT | Jeronimas Milius | "Nomads in the Night" | 30 |
| 17 | Belarus | BTRC | Ruslan Alehno | "Hasta la vista" | 27 |
| 18 | Czech Republic | ČT | Tereza Kerndlová | "Have Some Fun" | 9 |
| 19 | Hungary | MTV | Csézy | "Candlelight" | 6 |
Finals[]
Country in gold is the winning entry, the country in silver is the host country, and the countries in lime are the "Big 4" countries which are rewarded with automatic spots in the finals.
| Rank | Country | EBU member station | Artist | Song | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Russia | VGTRK | Dima Bilan | "Believe" | 272 |
| 02 | Ukraine | NTU | Ani Lorak | "Shady Lady" | 230 |
| 03 | Greece | ERT | Kalomira | "Secret Combination" | 218 |
| 04 | Armenia | AMPTV | Sirusho | "Qélé, Qélé" (Քելե Քելե) | 199 |
| 05 | Norway | NRK | Maria | "Hold On Be Strong" | 182 |
| 06 | Serbia | RTS | Jelena Tomašević feat. Bora Dugić | "Oro" (Оро) | 160 |
| 07 | Turkey | TRT | Mor ve Ötesi | "Deli" | 138 |
| 08 | Azerbaijan | İTV | Elnur and Samir | "Day After Day" | 132 |
| 09 | Israel | IBA | Boaz | "The Fire in Your Eyes" | 124 |
| 10 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | BHRT | Laka | "Pokušaj" | 110 |
| 11 | Georgia | GPB | Diana Gurtskaya | "Peace Will Come" | 83 |
| 12 | Latvia | LTV | Pirates of the Sea | "Wolves of the Sea" | 83 |
| 13 | Portugal | RTP | Vânia Fernandes | "Senhora do mar (negras águas)" | 69 |
| 14 | Iceland | RÚV | Euroband | "This Is My Life" | 64 |
| 15 | Denmark | DR | Simon Mathew | "All Night Long" | 60 |
| 16 | Spain | RTVE | Rodolfo Chikilicuatre | "Baila el Chiki Chiki" | 55 |
| 17 | Albania | RTSH | Olta Boka | "Zemrën e lamë peng" | 55 |
| 18 | Sweden | SVT | Charlotte Perrelli | "Hero" | 47 |
| 19 | France | France Télévisions | Sébastien Tellier | "Divine" | 47 |
| 20 | Romania | TVR | Nico and Vlad | "Pe-o margine de lume" | 45 |
| 21 | Croatia | HRT | Kraljevi ulice and 75 Cents | "Romanca" | 44 |
| 22 | Finland | YLE | Teräsbetoni | "Missä miehet ratsastaa" | 35 |
| 23 | Germany | ARD/NDR | No Angels | "Disappear" | 14 |
| 24 | Poland | TVP | Isis Gee | "For Life" | 14 |
| 25 | United Kingdom | BBC | Andy Abraham | "Even If" | 14 |
Awards[]
Marcel Bezençon Awards[]
- Artistic Award - "Shady Lady" by Ani Lorak (Ukraine)
- Composers Award - "Pe-o margine de lume" by Nico and Vlad (Romania)
- Poplight Fan Award - "Qélé, Qélé" by Sirusho (Armenia)
- Press Award - "Senhora do mar (negras águas)" by Vânia Fernandes (Portugal)
OGAE Poll[]
| Rank | Country | Artist(s) | Song | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sweden | Charlotte Perrelli | "Hero" | 308 |
| 2 | Switzerland | Paolo Meneguzzi | "Era stupendo" | 216 |
| 3 | Serbia | Jelena Tomašević feat. Bora Dugić | "Oro" | 178 |
| 4 | Iceland | Euroband | "This Is My Life" | 145 |
| 5 | Norway | Maria | "Hold On Be Strong" | 145 |
Barbara Dex Award[]
| Rank | Country | Artist(s) | Song |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andorra | Gisela | "Casanova" |
Broadcast[]
Participating countries[]
| Country | Broadcaster(s) | Commentator(s) | Shows | Spokesperson |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albania | RTSH | Leon Menkshi | Unknown | Leon Menkshi |
| Andorra | ATV | Meri Picart, Josep Lluís Trabal | Unknown | Alfred Llahí |
| Armenia | AMPTV | Felix Khachatryan | Unknown | Hrachuhi Utmazyan |
| Azerbaijan | İTV | Husniyya Maharramova, Isa Melikov | all shows | Leyla Aliyeva |
| Belarus | Belarus-1, Belarus TV | Denis Kurian | all shows | Olga Barabanschikova |
| Belgium (French) | La Une | Jean-Pierre Hautier, Jean-Louis Lahaye | first semi-finals and finals | Sandrine Van Handenhoven |
| Belgium (Dutch) | één | Bart Peeters, André Vermeulen | ||
| één+ | second semi-finals | |||
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | BHT1 | Dejan Kukrić | all shows | Melina Garibović |
| Bulgaria | BNT | Elena Rosberg, Georgi Kushvaliev | Unknown | Valentina Voykova |
| Croatia | HRT 2 | Duško Čurlić | semi-finals | Barbara Kolar |
| HRT 1 | finals | |||
| Cyprus | RIK 1 | Melina Karageorgiou | all shows | Hristina Marouhou |
| Czech Republic | ČT2 | Kateřina Kristelová | first semi-finals | Petra Šubrtová |
| ČT1 | second semi-finals and finals | |||
| Denmark | DR1 | Nikolai Molbech | all shows | Maria Montell |
| Estonia | ETV | Marko Reikop | all shows | Anna Sahlene |
| Raadio 2 | Mart Juur, Andrus Kivirähk | first semi-finals and finals | ||
| Finland (Finnish) | YLE TV2 | Jaana Pelkonen, Mikko Peltola | all shows | Mikko Leppilampi |
| YLE Radio Suomi | Sanna Kojo, Jorma Hietamäki | |||
| Finland (Swedish) | YLE FST5 | Thomas Lundin | ||
| YLE Radio Vega | Unknown | |||
| France | France 4 | Peggy Olmi, Yann Renoard | semi-finals | Cyril Hanouna |
| France 3 | Jean Paul Gaultier, Julien Lepers | finals | ||
| Georgia | GPB | Unknown | Unknown | Tika Patsatsia |
| Germany | NDR Fernsehen | Peter Urban | semi-finals | Thomas Hermanns |
| Das Erste | finals | |||
| Greece | NET, ERT World | Betty and Mathildi Maggira | all shows | Alexis Kostalas |
| Second Programme | Maria Kozakou | Unknown | ||
| Hungary | m1 | Gábor Gundel Takács | second semi-finals and finals | Éva Novodomszky |
| Iceland | Sjónvarpið | Sigmar Guðmundsson | all shows | Brynja Þorgeirsdóttir |
| Ireland | RTÉ Two | Marty Whelan | semi-finals | Niamh Kavanagh |
| RTÉ One | finals | |||
| RTÉ Radio 1 | Larry Gogan | first semi-finals and finals | ||
| Israel | IBA | No commentator | all shows | Noa Barak-Weshler |
| Latvia | LTV | Kārlis Streips | all shows | Kristīne Virsnīte |
| Lithuania | LRT | Darius Užkuraitis | Unknown | Rolandas Vilkončius |
| Macedonia | MTV 1 | Unknown | all shows | Ognen Janeski |
| Malta | TVM | Eileen Montesin | all shows | Moira Delia |
| Moldova | Moldova 1, TV Moldova Internațional | Lucia Danu, Vitalie Rotaru | all shows | Vitalie Rotaru |
| Montenegro | TVCG 2 | Dražen Bauković, Tamara Ivanković | semi-finals | Nina Radulović |
| TVCG 1 | finals | |||
| TVCG MNE | all shows | |||
| Netherlands | Nederland 1 | Cornald Maas | all shows | Esther Hart |
| Norway | NRK1 | Hanne Hoftun | first semi-finals and finals | Stian Barsnes-Simonsen |
| NRK3 | second semi-finals | |||
| Poland | TVP1, TVP Polonia | Artur Orzech | first semi-finals and finals | Radek Brzózka |
| Portugal | RTP1, RTP Internacional | Isabel Angelino | all shows | Sabrina |
| Romania | TVR1, TVRi | Leonard Miron | all shows | Alina Sorescu |
| Russia | Telekanal Rossiya, RTR Planeta | Dmitry Guberniev, Olga Shelest | all shows | Oxana Fedorova |
| San Marino | SMRTV | Gigi Restivo, Lia Fiorio | all shows | Roberto Moretti |
| Radio San Marino | Emilia Romagna | |||
| Serbia | RTS1, RTS Sat | Dragan Ilić, Mladen Popović | all shows | Dušica Spasić |
| Slovenia | SLO 2 | Andrej Hofer | semi-finals | Peter Poles |
| SLO 1 | finals | |||
| Val 202 | Aida Kurtović | all shows | ||
| Spain | La 2 | José Luis Uribarri | first semi-finals | Ainhoa Arbizu |
| La 1, TVE Internacional | finals | |||
| Sweden | SVT1, SVT Europa | Kristian Luuk, Josef Sterzenbach | all shows | Björn Gustafsson |
| Carl Bildt | finals | |||
| Sveriges Radio P4 | Carolina Norén, Björn Kjellman | Unknown | ||
| Switzerland (German) | SF zwei | Sven Epiney | second semi-finals and finals | Cécile Bähler |
| HD suisse | finals | |||
| Switzerland (French) | TSR 2 | Jean-Marc Richard, Nicolas Tanner | second semi-finals and finals | |
| Switzerland (Italian) | TSI 2 | Sandy Altermatt | second semi-finals | |
| TSI 1 | finals | |||
| Turkey | TRT 1, TRT Int | Unknown | all shows | Meltem Ersan Yazgan |
| TRT Türk | Bülend Özveren | finals | ||
| Ukraine | Pershyi Natsionalnyi | Timur Miroshnychenko | all shows | Marysya Horobets |
| United Kingdom | BBC Three | Paddy O'Connell, Caroline Flack | semi-finals | Carrie Grant |
| BBC One, BBC HD | Terry Wogan | finals | ||
| BBC Radio 2 | Ken Bruce |
Non-participating countries[]
| Country | Broadcaster(s) | Commentator(s) | Shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | SBS TV | Julia Zemiro, Paddy O'Connell, Caroline Flack | semi-finals |
| Julia Zemiro, Terry Wogan | finals | ||
| Austria | ORF 1 | Andi Knoll | finals |
| Gibraltar | GBC TV | Unknown | finals |
| New Zealand | Triangle Stratos | No commentator | all shows |
Broadcast notes[]
- Australia - SBS TV broadcast the semi-finals on 23 and 24 May 2008, and the final on 25 May 2008, with all shows broadcast deferred at 19:30 AEST (09:30 UTC).
- Belgium - één aired a repeat broadcast of the second semi-finals on 24 May at 10:00 CEST (08:00 UTC).
- Czech Republic - The first semi-finals were broadcast on ČT2 deferred on 21 May at 01:30 CEST (20 May at 23:30 UTC).
- Denmark - The first semi-finals were broadcast on DR1 deferred on 21 May at 22:00 CEST (20:00 UTC).
- Germany - The second semi-finals were broadcast on NDR Fernsehen deferred on 23 May at 00:45 CEST (22 May 22:45 UTC).
- New Zealand - Triangle Stratos broadcast a compilation of the semi-finals and finals ahead of its broadcast of the 2009 contest, with the two programmes broadcast on 3 May 2009 and 10 May 2009 respectively at 19:30 NZST (07:30 UTC).
- Portugal - The first semi-finals were broadcast deferred at 23:00 WEST (23:00 UTC).