Switzerland has officially been crowned the winner of Eurovision 2024, marking an end to what has been a controversial 68th edition of the cult-fave annual song contest.
Swiss singer Nemo (full name Nemo Mettler) took out the top spot with a banger performance of their song “The Code”, scoring 591 total points — including an overwhelming majority of the jury vote over bookmakers’ frontrunners Croatia and Israel.
Croatia finished runners up with 547 points for Baby Lasagna‘s performance of “Rim Tim Tagi Dim”, followed by Ukraine in 3rd with “Teresa & Maria” by alyona alyona & Jerry Heil, which landed 453 points.
575 points separated first and last place at Eurovision 2024, with Norway scoring just 16 points in the final tally.
Not only is Nemo’s win a huge moment for Switzerland — who haven’t won the Eurovision Song Contest since Ms Céline Dion won with “Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi” in 1988 — but also a huge personal win for the 24-year-old artist who is the competition’s first ever non-binary winner. Pretty huge considering they didn’t even know they were being put forward for Eurovision.
Nemo’s historic win serves as a nice silver lining to wrap up what has been a controversial Eurovision 2024.
Eurovision 2024 has been shrouded in controversy
Although Eurovision has historically branded itself as a non-political event, the 68th edition has been unable to escape controversy.
Despite protests, organisers refused to exclude Israel from the competition, but did ask Israeli artist Eden Golan to change lyrics they felt referred to Hamas. Ahead of the final, as many as 8,000 people formed a protest against Israel’s inclusion.
But it wasn’t just members of the public who protested, with Norway’s Eurovision points spokesperson Alessandra Mele withdrawing from her position just hours before the final.
“Tonight I was supposed to give out Norway’s points during the Eurovision final,” she said on Instagram. “Even though I’m thankful I was given the opportunity to do so, I’ve taken the decision to withdraw.”
“United By Music — Eurovision’s motto — is the reason I do music. Unite people, bring them together. But right now those words are just empty words. There is a genocide going on and I’m asking you all to please open up your eyes, open up your heart. Let love lead you to the truth. It’s right in front of you. Free Palestine.”
Similarly, Ireland’s Bambie Thug told CNN ahead of the song contest that it was “the wrong decision” not to exclude Israel — citing Russia’s previous expulsion two years ago.
In addition to various protests against Israeli occupation, Eurovision made headlines ahead of the final after Dutch artist Joost Klein, 26, — a favourite to win the whole thing — was disqualified amid allegations of threatening a female police officer.
Klein was initially banned from the final two dress rehearsals ahead of the final while organizers investigated claims, but was ultimately disqualified after a police investigation was launched.
“The police have taken all essential investigative measures and questioned the suspect, plaintiff and witnesses,” a Swedish police spokesperson told the BBC.
“The investigation has been completed by the police… and the case will now go to the prosecutor within a few weeks.”
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) decided that Klein’s participation would be inappropriate while Swedish police were investigating “unlawful threats.”
“We maintain a zero-tolerance policy towards inappropriate behaviour at our event and are committed to providing a safe and secure working environment for all staff at the Contest,” they said.
“In light of this, Joost Klein’s behaviour towards a team member is deemed in breach of Contest rules.”
Following his disqualification, Dutch broadcaster Avrotros, who sent Klein to Eurovision, said the move was “disproportionate”, alleging that it offered “several solutions” to the EBU to resolve the issue.
“Against the clearly made agreement, Joost was filmed when he had just gotten off stage and had to rush to the green room. At that moment, Joost repeatedly indicated that he did not want to be filmed. This wasn’t respected.”
This is not the first time a contestant has been disqualified from the competition, but never this close to a final.
If you’re looking to start your Sunday morning with a boogie, you can peep Nemo’s performance below.
