Eurovision 2025: Does the UK compete in semi-finals? The 'Big Five' countries explained - and why they get pass to grand final

The annual event is one of the biggest in the music and television calendar, with hundreds of millions of viewers across Europe and the world tuning in to watch the competition.

While Brits like to admit it or not, Eurovision is a national pastime for many, despite the UK’s rather abysmal track record in the contest over the past 25 years. Despite some ‘nil points’ in our time, the UK is still one of the biggest countries to consistently take part in the contest.

With the semi-finals taking place this week, we take a look at the UK’s involvement in the semi-final stage - and why getting to the final is easier for some rather than others.

Does the UK compete in Eurovision semi-finals?

The United Kingdom does not compete in the semi-finals of the Eurovision Song Contest. This is because the UK is part of the so-called ‘Big Five’ group.

As part of this, the UK is given an automatic place in the grand final, alongside other countries including France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, as well as the host country of each annual contest. This means that they bypass the public vote in the semi-final stage.

Despite the fact that the UK does not take part in the semi-final public vote, you might still see a performance from the UK’s act in the preliminary stages. This is because in recent years, the ‘Big Five’ group have been invited to perform their song in full in the semi-finals, compared to previously when viewers were only shown a snippet of the song ahead of the grand final.

This year, Remember Monday will perform in the second semi-final, taking place on Thursday, May 15. UK viewers will be able to vote in the second semi-final, but Remember Monday will not be taking part in the vote.

Why do ‘Big Five’ countries not have to compete in Eurovision semi-finals?

The ‘Big Five’ countries - France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom - are grouped together because they are the members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) that provide the highest financial contributions.

The concept was originally launched in 1999 but was known as the ‘Big Four’ at that point, with Italy not a member of the group until the country re-joined the competition in 2011. In 1999, the intention of bosses in creating the group was to ensure that the highest-paying members of the EBU are given an automatic right to compete.

However, when the semi-final stages were introduced into the competition in 2004, the EBU adjusted this to ensure that the Big Four countries were given an automatic place in the final.

This has drawn some criticism from participating countries in the past. Turkey, which has not competed in Eurovision since 2012, cited it as one of the reasons why it withdrew from the contest, stating that it is unfair to other participants that the Big Five only have to perform for the public once. In response to criticism, Eurovision bosses introduced the new format in 2024 which sees the automatic qualifiers perform their song in full during the semi-final stages, despite not taking part in the public vote.