Eurovision semi-final FAQ: What time are Ireland on? How does voting work?

With Eurovision host Graham Norton describing them as the 'little dark horses' of the competition, all eyes will be on Wild Youth tonight

Ireland's Eurovision hopefuls Wild Youth pictured t at the M&S Bank Arena before heading into their final day of rehearsals at Eurovision before taking part in Semi-final 1 which will air on RTÉ One at 8pm on Tuesday. Picture: Corinne Cumming Styling by Helen McCusker RTÉ

The countdown to the Eurovision is officially on with Irish hopefuls Wild Youth set to take to the semi-final stage in a matter of hours.

The Dublin band will perform their song, We Are One, during the first night of the semi-finals, before hopefully moving on to the grand final on Saturday. 

With Eurovision host Graham Norton describing them as "little dark horses" of the competition, all eyes will be on Wild Youth tonight.

If you're planning a Eurovision party or hoping to catch a glimpse of the boys in action, here's what you need to know about this year's competition and our entry.

When is the Eurovision on?

This first semi-final for this year’s Eurovision Song Contest kicks off at 8pm on Tuesday, May 9. Broadcasting live from Liverpool, the second semi-final will then take place on Thursday, May 11 at 8pm while the grand final is set for the same time on Saturday, May 13.

Ukraine won the competition last year but due to the ongoing Russian invasion, Liverpool will be hosting the 67th edition of the Song Contest on the country’s behalf.

Where can I watch it?

The 2023 Eurovision will be broadcast on RTÉ One from 8pm each evening. The Song Contest can also be viewed on the RTÉ Player.

What do we know about Wild Youth?

Wild Youth will be representing Ireland with their song, We Are One. Formed in 2016, the Dublin band is comprised of frontman Conor O’Donohoe, David Whelan, Ed Porter and Callum McAdam. The pop/rock group are well-known in Ireland and have already made it to the Irish charts with popular songs such as Making Me Dance.

They released their debut single All or Nothing in 2017 and have opened for acts like Westlife, Kodaline, Zara Larsson and Niall Horan.

In early 2019, they were widely tipped as the country’s next best thing.

What do we know about Ireland’s performance?

Wild Youth will perform tonight (Tuesday), which is the first night of the semi-finals. Hoping to secure a place in the grand final, the band’s frontman Conor O’Donohue has promised a “big and bold” performance. In recent weeks, the band hit headlines when they announced their decision to cut ties with their Eurovision creative director, Ian Banham.

Wild Youth are currently scheduled to perform sixth tonight. Also competing during the first semi-final will be Norway, Malta, Serbia, Latvia, Portugal, Croatia, Switzerland, Israel, Moldova, Sweden, Azerbaijan, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and Finland.

In total, 37 counties will be taking part in this year’s Eurovision. The remaining countries will perform on Thursday night during the second installment of the competition’s semi-finals.

How does the judging work?

Voting had been changed this year and for the first time, viewers from outside participating countries can now vote through the Eurovision App or directly on the new voting hub. These votes will count under a category called “Rest of World”. Participating countries can vote on the app and by telephone/SMS.

This year, it will also be just viewers' votes that determine which countries will move on to the Grand Final. The Professional Jury will not come into play until the final.

When the vote closes the Top 10 most popular songs in each participating country will be allocated points from 1 to 8, 10 and 12. According to the official Eurovision website, the 10 songs that have received the most votes from the “Rest Of The World” will be allocated points using the same scale and have the weight of one additional voting country.

The audience in each participating country will award a total of 58 points (1 – 8, 10 and 12) and the audience voting from non-participating countries will also award a total of the same number of points.

In the Grand Final, viewers in all of the 37 countries taking part in this year’s Eurovision can vote for their favourite song.

Voting opens after the last song and when it closes and like with the semi-finals, the audience in each participating country will award a total of 58 points (1 – 8, 10 and 12). The Rest of World category will also award 58 points as will the Jury in each of the 37 participating countries.

Each Jury will watch and cast their votes based on Dress Rehearsal 2 which will take place in the evening of Friday 12 May.

How many people will qualify?

Out of a total of 37 participating countries, 26 songs will make it to the grand final. But of course, there can only be one winner on Saturday night.