Own Eurovision Song Contest 2

Own Eurovision Song Contest 2, often referred to as OESC #02, is the 2nd edition of Own Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Stockholm, Sweden, following Charlotte Perrelli's win in the last edition. It was the first time Sweden, had hosted the contest.

Thirty-four countries confirmed participation in the contest. Germany, Greenland, Iceland, Israel, Monaco, Montenegro, Norway and Ukraine made their debut, while Belgium, Denmark, Italy and Lebanon withdrew from the contest. Despite not participating this edition, Belgium was granted the right to vote in all the shows as a jury.

The second winner of the Own Eurovision Song Contest was Croatia with Franka Batelic & Eric Destler singing "On Fire" which received 164 points. Second place went to Romania, third to Norway, fourth to Ireland and Sweden, the host country, taking the 5th place. Romania and Sweden were the only members of the "Big Five" to make it into the top 10. However, out of the 26 countries who made it into the final, the remaining three of the "Big Five", Greece, Russia and Spain, failed to make it into the top half of the leader board.

The Own Eurovision Song Contest 2 marks United Kingdom's last participation in the contest before they split into England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.

Location
Further information on the host country: Sweden

Host City
Stockholm is the capital of Sweden. It has the most populous urban area in Sweden as well as in Scandinavia. 1 million people live in the municipality, approximately 1.6 million in the urban area, and 2.4 million in the metropolitan area. The city stretches across fourteen islands where Lake Mälaren flows into the Baltic Sea. Outside the city to the east, and along the coast, is the island chain of the Stockholm archipelago. The area has been settled since the Stone Age, in the 6th millennium BC, and was founded as a city in 1252 by Swedish statesman Birger Jarl. It is also the county seat of Stockholm County.

Stockholm is the cultural, media, political, and economic centre of Sweden. The Stockholm region alone accounts for over a third of the country's GDP, and is among the top 10 regions in Europe by GDP per capita. Ranked as an alpha-global city, it is the largest in Scandinavia and the main centre for corporate headquarters in the Nordic region. The city is home to some of Europe's top ranking universities, such as the Stockholm School of Economics, Karolinska Institute, KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Stockholm University. It hosts the annual Nobel Prize ceremonies and banquet at the Stockholm Concert Hall and Stockholm City Hall. One of the city's most prized museums, the Vasa Museum, is the most visited non-art museum in Scandinavia. The Stockholm metro, opened in 1950, is well known for the decor of its stations; it has been called the longest art gallery in the world. Sweden's national football arena is located north of the city centre, in Solna. Avicii Arena, the national indoor arena, is in the southern part of the city. The city was the host of the 1912 Summer Olympics, and hosted the equestrian portion of the 1956 Summer Olympics otherwise held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

Stockholm is the seat of the Swedish government and most of its agencies, including the highest courts in the judiciary, and the official residencies of the Swedish monarch and the Prime Minister. The government has its seat in the Rosenbad building, the Riksdag (Swedish parliament) is seated in the Parliament House, and the Prime Minister's residence is adjacent at Sager House. Stockholm Palace is the official residence and principal workplace of the Swedish monarch, while Drottningholm Palace, a World Heritage Site on the outskirts of Stockholm, serves as the Royal Family's private residence.

Venue
Friends Arena, the Association football national arena of Sweden, is a retractable roof multi-purpose stadium located next to Lake Råstasjön in Solna, just north of Stockholm City Centre. The main tenants of the stadium are Sweden's national football team and top-tier Stockholm football club AIK. Both relocated from their previous home at the Råsunda Stadium. The venue has a total capacity of 65,000 at concerts and 50,000 seated at football matches, but the stadium can be scaled down to accomplish a more intimate setting to host smaller events with a capacity of approximately 20,000 guests. Friends Arena is the biggest football stadium, and indoor venue, in the Nordic countries.

Initially there were plans to build a new national stadium close to the indoor venue Ericsson Globe in Stockholm, but at 1 April 2006 the Swedish Football Association (SvFF) took the decision to build the new stadium in Solna, where the old Råsunda Stadium is located. It was calculated to cost around 1.9 billion kronor (170 million euro) to complete. The estimated cost before construction had begun was 2.3 billion kronor. It replaced Råsunda Stadium, Sweden's former national arena for football. Råsunda will be torn down and will be the first stadium that hosted a FIFA World Cup in history to be removed. Blocks of 700 flats and office buildings will be erected on the site.

Swedbank acquired the naming rights to the new stadium in a 153 million kronor (about 20.5 million euro) deal that will last until 2023. While the arena was originally to be known as Swedbank Arena under the deal, Swedbank announced on 28 March 2012 that it would donate its naming rights to Friends, a nonprofit organization against school bullying of which Swedbank is a supporter. As such, the stadium was re-named Friends Arena.

Semi-final 1
Fourteen countries participated in the first semi-final. Greece, Russia and Sweden also voted in this semi-final. Belgium voted as a jury.

Semi-final 2
Fifteen countries participated in the second semi-final. Romania, Spain and Sweden voted in this semi-final. Belgium voted as a jury. Monaco was disqualified for not voting.

Final
Twenty-six countries participated in the final, with all 34 participating countries eligible to vote. Belgium voted as a jury. Albania, Andorra, Austria, Portugal and Switzerland were disqualified for violation of the rules.