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Eurovision Song Contest 2022 - The Ultimate Betting Guide

Dean Ryan for Bookies.com

Dean Ryan  | 15 mins

Eurovision Song Contest 2022 - The Ultimate Betting Guide

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The 2022 Eurovision Song Contest takes place in Turin, Italy, from the 10-14th May. With 40 countries taking part in the semi-final stages to the final itself, there has never been a more inclusive and grand show for the Eurovision. Proceedings are ramped up even more in 2022 because of the return to a full stadium, which is none other than the former Winter Olympics stadium, Pala Alpitour. It has a 12,350 seated capacity and is ready to welcome the fans, singers and entourages of Europe’s brightest talent!

The structure of the Eurovision has evolved over the years, but the key elements remain as follows. Keep reading on for our Ultimate Betting Guide to the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest before placing your bets at one of our best betting sites.

The Big 5 Eurovision Countries

Nicknamed “The Big 5”, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom, France and Germany are all granted exemptions from qualification for the final of the Eurovision Song Contest. The only other exemption is for the host country, and that honour is bestowed on the winner of the Eurovision from the year before. So, a total of six countries is the maximum number of entrants that will not have to endure a qualification process via the semi-finals. That is only if the previous winner of the contest was not already one of the Big 5!

The Eurovision Semi-Finals

To fully decide the lineup of finalists for the Eurovision Song Contest, all countries that enter without a qualification exemption need to perform in one of the two semi-finals, which take place in the week of the Eurovision. The top 10 countries from each semi-final will qualify for the final itself, which means the maximum entrants for the Eurovision Final will be 26 – therefore plenty of countries to potentially use free bets on.

The Eurovision Final

The final of this year’s Eurovision will be the 64th renewal of the great competition, and it takes place on the evening of Saturday the 14th May 2022. As Italy won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2021, they are the host nation and have chosen the Pala Alpitour stadium, which is situated in Turin event with a seating capacity of over 12,000.

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Famous winners of the Eurovision Song Contest

Winning the Eurovision Song Contest can make stars of relatively unknown artists and catapult them into global fame and fortune, and you may be surprised to recall some of the past winners as participants in the competition let alone winners of the Eurovision itself.

Céline Dion took the Eurovision title for Switzerland back in 1988 and went on to huge global fame and success as a solo artist. ABBA won the Eurovision with mega hit Waterloo in 1974 and are probably one of the most recognised musical artists of all time. English pop band Bucks Fizz took the title in 1981 and still perform today after a string of pop hits before and after they landed the prestigious crown, while the Irish record in the competition has been the envy of their European neighbours for decades with seven wins and Eurovision stars like dual winner Johnny Logan, Dana and Linda Martin household names in Ireland and across the Eurozone.

Betting on Eurovision

Odds on the Eurovision Song Contest have been around for decades. European sportsbooks and especially UK betting sites and Ireland betting sites have offered betting markets on the Eurovision to passionate fans for many years. With the addition of semi-finals and the ever expanding reach of the contest to include new countries, betting on qualification for the final, top five and top 10 positions, finishing last, points totals and country vs. country match bets are now regular features with the leading online betting sites when Eurovision season rolls around.

 

The Top 6 Eurovision Betting Sites Ranked

1. Unibet
2. 10Bet
3. 888sport
4. STS
5. Paddy Power
6. Betway

All of these top 6 Eurovision online bookmakers have a host of available markets for the Eurovision Song Contest right now and with competitive odds, in play betting and more are worth joining ahead of the competition starting this week. Check out the reviews from our experts and all you need to know about their welcome offers and new customer free betsbefore registering.

Eurovision Song Contest Latest Odds & Betting Options

Winner Outright

This market is available before the semi-finals take place, often immediately after the previous Eurovision has finished and allows for ante-post or futures betting with the main online sportsbooks and betting sites in your region. You can also use new customer betting offers on a country each way with many betting sites offering place terms as generous as three or even four places.

Top-4 Finish

This is betting on a country to finish in the final top four places in the final. If the country you select wins, you will still be paid the same as if the country finishes 2nd, 3rd or 4th, and the odds will reflect this accordingly by being shorter than the odds to win outright for the same country.

Top-10 Finish

This is betting on a country to finish in the top 10 in the final. Again, expect odds to be significantly shorter than the outright win market and shorter again than the top four or top-five markets as you are getting 10 places with which your bet can be a winner. In the occurrence of ties and countries having the same points totals, only the top 10 finishers including ties will count.

To Qualify – Semi-Final Betting

Markets are available to bet on a country to qualify for the final via one of the two semi-finals that take place during the week of the Eurovision Song Contest. You just need to find a country that will finish in the top 10 of that semi-final to make it through to the final itself, and then you will have backed a winner.

To Win – Semi-Final Betting

Here you are backing a country to win a respective semi-final. Each semi-final will be priced up accordingly, and you are only up against those that are drawn in the same semi-final, and your country must finish top of that semi-final to land your bet.

Top Balkan Country – Eurovision Betting

Some sports betting sites will offer specials markets that allow you to put certain Euro blocks against each other for betting purposes. Top Balkan countries will include the likes of Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece and Albania in a market where your selection just needs to outperform the other Balkan countries to land your wager, regardless of whether they win the Eurovision or not. Top Nordic Country, Top Baltic Country and matchups like UK vs. Ireland are also popular specials and props markets for the Eurovision Song Contest and could be worth using betting welcome offers on.

To Finish Last Eurovision Betting

Betting on a country to finish last is a very popular market for the Eurovision. To land this bet, you will need your selected country to finish stone last, and you can cheer every announcement of “nil points” as the results come in on the 14th May 2022. For example, there are odds available of +800 or 8/1 for the United Kingdom to come last at the Eurovision Song Contest 2022!

Eurovision Voting Rules

For the final of the Eurovision Song Contest, the voting works in a somewhat complicated method. Each participating country is allowed to vote for their favourite songs but not their own should they be taking part in the final itself. A panel from each country will apply a scoring tally of 1pt through to 8pts in order of preference, and then one country will be given 10pts and another the maximum 12pts.

The panel or jury will usually be a group of celebrities, music professionals and industry personnel. The same scoring procedure will also be bestowed on the television viewers from each country with votes being collected via telephone, SMS messages, online via the official app and across the whole of the Eurozone. These votes will be tallied and collected to produce the viewers’ totals, which are added to each country’s score after the judges and panels scores have been announced.

This results in a huge climax as the leaderboard moves quickly to show if the viewers have agreed or not with the expert jury and panels to crown the eventual winner of Eurovision 2022.

Eurovision Draw Bias

To be totally fair to all countries, the draw for the performance positions in the semi-finals and final of the competition are random, meaning that a lottery-style draw will determine if a country goes first on the night or last. It is often considered a poor draw if performing early on the night as opposed to later in the show as songs are remembered better the closer they are to the voting lines opening, which only happens at the end of the performances.

Eurovision Free Bets and Betting Offers

Lots of online betting sites will offer new customers a welcome bonus or free bet that can be used on the Eurovision Song Contest. Be sure to check here at Bookiess.com for the best and latest betting offers that will allow you to receive a bonus or free bet on the Eurovision this year.

Where Can I Find the Odds for the Eurovision?

Choose one of the betting sites on the below list and once registered look for TV and Specials markets on their sportsbooks. Often at the time of the Eurovision itself betting sites and betting apps will highlight the odds sufficiently on their home pages and banners to allow you easy access to their odds, specials, props markets and live leaderboards while the contest is in play.

In-Play Betting on The Eurovision Song Contest

Like many major sports and events these days in-play betting is a big factor for people when enjoying the event on TV with millions of people. In-play betting on the Eurovision is becoming hugely popular, and the odds for the outright winner, top country and finishing last will change at pace with each performance and as each of the respective countries provide their scores to the hosts and the leaderboard reacts. Be sure to check your preferred betting site for live odds as the contest begins, and you may well receive cash-out options on your selections should they be heading for success or even disaster.

The Leading Eurovision Contenders Odds

This year the market for the most likely winner of the Eurovision Song Contest is headed by Ukraine.

Top 10 in Betting for Eurovision (updated as of May 9th)

  • Ukraine - 8/11
  • Italy - 7/1
  • United Kingdom - 7/1
  • Sweden - 9/1
  • Spain - 16/1
  • Greece - 20/1
  • Norway - 40/1
  • Poland - 40/1
  • Netherlands - 66/1
  • France - 125/1

Top Tips for Betting on Eurovision

1. Watch the songs and the semi-finals before making your choices! There is great excitement before the tournament begins, and watching videos of the artists and judging the songs for yourself before the rest of the usual audience sees them only on the night is a great tip to making a good decision in advance and getting the best odds for your fancies.

Here are some to enjoy already.

Many more are available online to check out before making your selections.

2. Consider a staking plan to suit your budget and enjoyment. Spreading your bets at small levels across a host of countries and markets will offer the best experience with anything possible at a live final, from a breathtaking showstopper performance to a complete malfunction that ruins any hopes of victory at the last moment. Remember to bet within in your means and only what you can afford to part with.

3. Live Betting is a great option, and the best in-play betting sites will cover the Eurovision at great length, offering live in-play markets while the contest takes place. Keeping a bet for that is sensible too, as it allows you to make a decision based on the very latest reactions, scores, votes and performances as they take place.

Top Eurovision Bookmakers – Where to Place Your Eurovision Bet This Year?

Our list of best online sports betting sites and bookmakers offers for your region is the perfect place to start when looking for a Eurovision betting site. We update our lists regularly with the latest offers for the Eurovision and all prime-time TV and sporting events to make sure you find what you want. Be sure to bookmark our page for the latest news, odds and advice when it comes to Eurovision betting.

Eurovision 2022 Predictions and Tips

(Last updated 9th May 2022)

Now we know the Semi Final draws and are just days away from the first performances  in Tuesday and Thursday's qualifying events it's time to assess the best bets and predictions based on the bookmaker markets currently available.

The ante post Eurovision favorites Ukraine will compete in Tuesday's semi final and are a short priced 1/2 or -200 to land a spot in Saturday nights Final and rightly so, they have impressed in rehearsals and although the song isn't perhaps the standard Eurovision blockbuster it will certainly garner enough support to see them into the weekend. Latvia and Iceland are impressing the local set watchers and Eurovision bettors alike with support in the markets being seen and both of those countries should be sufficiently well placed to make it to the Eurovision final along side the big nations.

United Kingdom viewers will not be voting until Thursday's semi final and that draw included Ireland who will be likely to make it through this year to the grand finale with Brooke Scullion representing the most successful country in Eurovision history. Also in on Thursday night will be big fancy for overall success Sweden and they should have no problem navigating the semi final voting to secure a place in the competition proper on Saturday night in Turin.


Eurovision Song Contest Predictions 2022

In order of popularity with the biggest Eurovision betting sites and bookmakers:

To finish in the following order:

1st. Ukraine
2nd. United Kingdom
3rd. Italy
4th. Sweden
5th. Spain

At the other end of the predictions Austria and Lithuania are expected to fare the worst in the Eurovision overall before the Semi Finals have been completed.

Eurovision FAQs

Can you bet on Eurovision?

Yes, most online betting sites will offer odds in their specials markets on the Eurovision Song Contest. At Bookies.com, we provide the best betting sites and betting offers so that you don’t have to go searching far and wide for value.

Who are the favourites to win Eurovision?

This year’s favourites in the betting for the Eurovision Song Contest are Ukraine. The defending champions Italy should be strong in their home competition, while Sweden are also widely tipped. There are a number of potential dark horses to choose from such as Netherlands or Norway.

When is Eurovision 2022?

The first semi-final of the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest starts on 10th May, with the second semi-final taking place on 12th May. The top 10 of each semi-final alongside the Big 5 and defending champions will qualify for the final on 14th May.

What odds are Ukraine to win Eurovision?

At the time of writing, Ukraine are the big betting favourites with all online betting sites. While their odds are likely to fluctuate slightly between now and the start of the competition and then before the final, provided they make it there, their best odds at present are 8/11.

About the Author

Dean is respected tipster, journalist and broadcaster on sports - mainly horse racing. Having featured across radio, TV and podcasts, his betting knowledge is developed over decades in the gambling industry across a number of different publications and platforms. You will usually find him on social media discussing Tottenham Hotspur or the Cheltenham Festival.