A detailed set of rules and obligations, which all participating broadcasters and participants in the annual Eurovision Song Contest () must uphold, is produced annually ahead of each edition of the international song contest. These rules are drafted by the contest organisers, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), and approved by the contest's reference group. They typically outline which songs may be deemed eligible for entry, the format of the contest, the voting system employed to select a contest winner and how the results of this vote are presented to the televised audience, the overall values of the contest, and distribution and broadcasting rights through television, radio and streaming services.
Since the contest's inaugural edition in 1956, the rules upon which the event has been organised and contested have changed over time.
General format The Eurovision Song Contest is an international song competition held among broadcasting networks that are members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Each participating broadcaster submits an original song representing their respective country which is performed on live television and radio and transmitted to all of them via the EBU's Eurovision and Euroradio networks, hosted by one of the participating broadcasters in an auditorium in a selected host city. Following all entries each participating country casts votes for their favourite performances from the other countries, and the song which has received the most points at the end of the programme is declared the winner.
Since 2008, each contest consists of three live television shows held over one week in May. Two semi-finals are held on the Tuesday and Thursday of "Eurovision week", followed by a final on the Saturday. All competing broadcasters compete in one of the two semi-finals, with the exception of that year's host broadcaster (or the defending champion if another broadcaster hosts due to unforeseen circumstances) and the "Big Five" —the broadcasters from , , , , and the — who receive an automatic berth in the final as the contest's biggest financial contributors. All remaining competing broadcasters are split randomly across the two semi-finals, and the 10-highest scoring entries in each semi-final qualify for the final; 26 entries in total therefore compete in the final each year unless the host broadcaster is also part of the "Big Five", in which case 25 entries would compete in the final.
The votes each country provides to determine the overall winner consists of two parts: television viewers and radio listeners in each country can vote for their favourite song through telephone and SMS voting or by voting through the official Eurovision app, with all votes tallied to create a public "top 10" for that country; a selected jury of five music professionals is also appointed by each country's participating broadcaster, who rank all entries in the shows to determine their "top 10" songs. Each country then provides two sets of points representing the views of the public and jury, with each set containing the points 1-8, 10, and 12, with the highest ranked song receiving 12 points. The semi-final qualifiers are solely determined by the public vote.
The contest is a non-profit event, with financing for each year's event typically raised through a mandatory participation fee from each participating broadcaster, which varies for each country depending on its size and viewership, as well as contributions from the host broadcaster and the host city, and commercial revenues from any contest sponsorships, ticket sales for the live shows, televoting revenues and merchandise.
Eligibility to participate in the contest is limited to full members of the EBU, which consist of member broadcasters from states which fall within the European Broadcasting Area, or are member or observer states of the Council of Europe. Associate member broadcasters may also be allowed to compete in the contest, should they receive approval from the contest's reference group.
Organisation Each edition of the contest is organised by the EBU together with a host broadcaster, and is overseen by the reference group on behalf of all participating broadcasters, who are each represented by a nominated head of delegation. The head of delegation for each participating broadcaster is responsible for leading their country's delegation at the event, and is their contact person with the EBU. A delegation will typically include a head of press, the main performers, the songwriters and composers, the backing performers, and the artist's entourage, and can range from twenty to fifty people depending on the country. The heads of delegation will typically meet in March before the contest is held, to receive detailed information about the shows, the venue, stage design, lighting, and sound to best prepare their entry for the contest, as well as details on the event organisation, such as transportation and accommodation during the event.
Scrutineers and executive supervisors
The contest's voting procedure is presided over by a scrutineer nominated by the EBU, who is responsible for ensuring that all points are allocated correctly and in turn. This role has been a consistent feature of the contest since its first edition, and evolved into the role of the executive supervisor, who is also responsible for overseeing the organisation of the contest on behalf of the EBU, enforcing the rules and monitoring the television production during the live shows. Since 2011, an event and security manager (until 2023 known as event supervisor) also oversees and coordinates other matters related to the event on behalf of the EBU.
A restructure ahead of the 2025 contest saw the addition of two new roles: the ESC director and commercial director, respectively filled by Martin Green and Jurian van der Meer, with the ESC director overseeing the work of the executive supervisor and commercial director. The executive supervisor role was abolished ahead of the 2026 contest and replaced with the executive producer role, with Gert Kark appointed as the first holder of the post.
The table below outlines the holders of the posts of executive supervisor and event supervisor in the contest's history:
+ Executive supervisors Name Contest(s) Total Rolf Liebermann 1956–1957 2 1958–1962 5 Miroslav Vilček 1963–1965 3 Clifford Brown 1966–1977 12 1978–1992 15 Christian Clausen 1993–1995 3 Christine Marchal-Ortiz 1996; 1998–2002 6 Marie-Claire Vionnet 1997 1 Sarah Yuen 2003 1 Svante Stockselius 2004–2010 7 Jon Ola Sand 2011–2020 9 (1 cancelled) Martin Österdahl 2021–2025 5 + Event and security managers Name Contest(s) Total 2011–2016 5 Nadja Burkhardt 2016–2022 6 (1 cancelled) Andreas Schmitz-Mensger 2023–present 3
Reference group The reference group is the contest's executive committee and works on behalf of all participating broadcasters in the contest. The group of broadcast executives and producers from various EBU member organisations meets four to five times a year, and its role is to approve the development and format of the contest, secure financing, control the contest's branding, raise public awareness, and to oversee the yearly preparations of the contest with the host broadcaster.
The composition of the group consists of a chairperson, three elected members from among the heads of delegations, the executive producer(s) of the upcoming contest as well as of the two previous contests, up to another two invited members with relevant competence and experience, and the executive producer on behalf of the EBU, which is separate from the executive producer(s) appointed by the host broadcaster. Previously, the chairperson typically comes from a EBU member broadcaster which does not participate in the contest, though this has been abolished; the chairperson is currently elected from among all member broadcasters' high-ranking personnel, with the chosen candidate going on to serve a two-year term.
the current membership of the reference group is as follows:
(chairperson; RTVE) Gert Kark (EBU executive producer) Michael Krön (ORF) Moritz Stadler (SRG SSR) Ebba Adielsson (SVT) Carla Bugalho (RTP) Molly Plank (DR) Claudia van der Pas (AVROTROS) Tomislav Štengl (HRT) David Tserunyan (AMPTV)
Song and artist eligibility The rules of the contest set out which songs may be eligible to compete. As the contest is for new compositions, and to prevent any one competing entry from having an advantage compared to the other entries, the contest organisers typically set a restriction on when a song may be released commercially for it to be considered eligible. Rules in recent years have typically seen this date set as the first day of September of the year before the contest is to be held, however this date has varied, and in the contest's history this has been as late as a few weeks before the contest is held. Previously, songs were not allowed to be released commercially in any other country than that which it represented until after the final, however this criterion is no longer in place, and with the advancement in technology and the growth of Internet streaming, songs are regularly published online and released globally, and are now promoted via the Eurovision official website and social media platforms ahead of the contest.
No restrictions regarding the song duration were originally enacted when the contest was first founded, however following heavy protests over the , which lasted for minutes, a new rule was implemented, requiring each competing song to have a maximum duration of three minutes; a rule that still applies.
No rule has ever been implemented to limit the nationality or country of birth of the competing artists; many competing countries with a small population, such as and , were regularly represented by artists and composers from other countries, and several winning artists in the contest's history have held a different nationality or were born in a different country to that which they represented in the contest.
Each competing performance may feature a maximum of six people on stage, and may not contain live animals. Since , all performers must have had turned 16 in the year the contest was held; this rule was introduced after two artists in the were 11 and 12 years old on the day of the contest, which caused the broadcasters from a few competing countries to complain. Several participating broadcasters organising national finals are changing the minimum age for its performers to 18 starting in , a change that was subsequently confirmed with the release of the updated general rules by the EBU. This rule's introduction means that Sandra Kim, who won the contest for in at the age of 13, would remain the contest's youngest winner until the rule is changed. No performer may compete for more than one country at the contest in a given year.
Live music Live music has been an integral part of the contest since its first edition. The main vocals of the competing songs must be sung live on stage, however other rules on pre-recorded musical accompaniment have changed over time.