Sweden wins Eurovision Song Contest after thrilling night at Liverpool grand final

Sweden entrant Loreen (Aaron Chown/PA) — © Aaron Chown

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Sweden claimed the Eurovision Song Contest crown in Liverpool on Saturday night after a thrilling night as the British city hosted the grand final in place of last year’s winners Ukraine.

Loreen's song Tattoo won over voters and judges with a total of 583 points, coming in ahead of Finland in second and Israel in third. It's the second time the singer has won the contest, having previously taken home the crown in 2012.

Sweden now has the joint most amount of Eurovision wins alongside Ireland with seven.

Hosts Great Britain came second last with 24 points while last year’s winners Ukraine came in sixth place with 243 points.

It came after another year of disappointment for Ireland, with Wild Youth failing to make it out of the semi-finals earlier this week with their song We Are One.

The Princess of Wales made a surprise appearance playing piano during the opening performance.

Kate, who has grade 3 piano, played a pre-recorded instrumental piece which was recorded at Windsor Castle earlier this month.

The clip, which is around 10 seconds long, appeared in a performance by last year's winners Kalush Orchestra, which also includes contributions from Andrew Lloyd-Webber and Sam Ryder.

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The grand final of the pop music competition took place on Saturday in Liverpool. This year’s theme was “united by music” as Britain hosted the event on behalf of Ukraine, which won last year’s competition.

Two-time Irish entries Jedward also put in an appearance.

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The show opened with a performance by Kalush Orchestra, the Ukrainian folk-rap band that took the 2022 trophy with its lyrical and defiant song Stefania.

As contestants from finalist nations entered in an Olympics-style flag parade, there were live performances from Ukrainian acts including Jamala, Tina Karol and Verka Serduchka — all past Eurovision competitors. Britain’s Sam Ryder, who came in second place last year, also performed, along with a clutch of past Eurovision greats who performed a set of classic Liverpool songs.

Founded in 1956, and having launched stars from ABBA to Celine Dion, the contest has once again become a platform that can launch careers. Italian rock band Måneskin, who won in 2021, have played major U.S. festivals and opened for the Rolling Stones on tour. Ryder has had a No.1 album and performed at the Glastonbury festival.

BBC Eurovision host Graham Norton, presented the final alongside Ted Lasso star Hannah Waddingham, British singer Alesha Dixon and Ukrainian rock star Julia Sanina, said the days of poking fun at Eurovision are over.

“You can’t laugh at the acts anymore, because they’re so good," the Cork-born comic and broadcaster said.