Today saw the final day of individual rehearsals in Kyiv. Although it did not see great change at the top of the bookie’s favourites – Italy and Portugal still reign supreme – further down the table, other countries have been quietly gathering confidence.
With short TV impressions of the automatic finalist rehearsals shared on the official YouTube channel, fans caught a glimpse of what some of Saturday’s performances will look and sound like. Italy kept its shine, as expected.
Never give up… on UK
But it is the UK’s Lucie Jones who appears to have benefitted most from the day. The singer had already started to climb after the first British showing on stage on Friday. With today’s rehearsal, odds began to shorten still further, a movement which only strengthened when the singer selected a second-half start position in the final. At one point, the UK briefly entered the top ten across the bookmakers’ favourites to win. Since then, odds have lengthened slightly, but “Never Give Up On You” finishes the day on a respectable 11th place on average.
The Netherlands too have cause for quiet confidence. OG3NE’s “Lights and Shadows” manages to hang on to an eighth favourite position overall, after the girls entered the top ten after their second rehearsal on Saturday morning.
Bookies’ clingers and drifters
Finland and Denmark cling to the bottom of the top ten favourites, while Australia and Belgium drift further into 12th and 13th.
With Sweden, Bulgaria, Armenia, Romania and Azerbaijan still filling places 3 to 7, little else has changed in the betting. Tomorrow, however, brings the first full dress rehearsal of the first semifinal.
Can a full preview of the show shake up the current standings?