Austria wins Eurovision crown with JJ’s song Wasted Love | World News

BASEL, Switzerland -Austria won the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 in Swiss host city Basel on Saturday, with the country’s first victory since bearded drag queen Conchita Wurst won in 2014.

Operatic singer JJ won ahead of Israel in the world’s biggest music competition, which was watched by more than 160 million people across the world.

The win was Austria’s third in the competition, following Conchita’s success and Udo Juergens’ victory in 1966.

JJ, a 24-year-old from Vienna, combined elements of opera, techno and high-pitched vocals in his song Wasted Love, winning the hearts of the professional juries and telephone voters.

Switzerland won the right to host Eurovision after Swiss rapper and singer Nemo won last year’s contest in Malmo, Sweden.

Fans travelled from across Europe and beyond to Basel, with 100,000 people attending Eurovision events in the city, including the final.

Eurovision, which stresses its political neutrality, has also faced controversy again this year due to the war in Gaza.

Israel’s entrant, Yuval Raphael, was at the Nova music festival during the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas militants on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage, according to Israeli officials.

Pro-Palestinian groups urged the European Broadcasting Union to exclude Israel over Gaza, where more than 50,000 people have been killed in the ensuing offensive by Israel, according to local health officials.

Around 200 protesters mounted a demonstration in Basel on Saturday evening.

Spanish public broadcaster RTVE also showed a message before the start of the Eurovision show saying “When human rights are at stake, silence is not an option. Peace and Justice for Palestine”.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.