HistoryData
culture2000

Eurovision Song Contest 2000 — 45th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest

January 1, 2000

The 45th Eurovision Song Contest, held in Stockholm in 2000, was the first edition broadcast live over the internet, reaching audiences across multiple continents.

Quick Facts

Year
2000
Category
culture

Key Facts

Edition
45th Eurovision Song Contest
Date
13 May 2000
Winner
Denmark – Olsen Brothers, 'Fly on the Wings of Love'
Winning score
195 points (third-highest ever at the time)
Venue capacity (audience)
13,000 people
Participating countries
24 countries

By the Numbers

45
Edition
13
Date
195
Winning score
13,000people
Venue capacity (audience)

Location

Map of Stockholm, SwedenMap of Stockholm, SwedenStockholm, Sweden

Cause → Event → Consequence

Cause

Sweden earned hosting rights after Charlotte Nilsson won the 1999 Eurovision Song Contest with 'Take Me to Your Heaven', obligating broadcaster SVT and the EBU to organise the following year's edition. Five countries from 1999 were relegated by average points rules, and five others including first-time entrant Latvia were admitted.

Event

On 13 May 2000, the Stockholm Globe Arena hosted 24 competing nations before an audience of 13,000. Presenters Kattis Ahlström and Anders Lundin oversaw the contest, which was simultaneously webcast via Microsoft's MSN portals in Europe, the United States, Canada and Australia — a first for Eurovision.

Consequence

Denmark's Olsen Brothers won with 195 points, and 'Fly on the Wings of Love' achieved chart success across Europe. Russia and Estonia recorded their best-ever results, while Latvia's high début placing was historically notable. The internet broadcast established a precedent for digital distribution of the contest in subsequent years.

Work

Eurovision Song Contest 2000

by Olsen Brothers (winning act); organised by EBU and SVTmusic
The 2000 contest marked Eurovision's first live internet broadcast and saw Denmark win with a record-high points total at the time, broadening the event's global digital reach.

Timeline Context

Timeline around 20002000199719981999200120022003Basketball at the 2000 Summer Olympics — international basketball tournament20th century — time period between January 1, 1901, and ended on December 31, 20002000s — decade from 2000 to 20092000 Formula One World Championship — sports season2000 Summer Olympics — Games of the XXVII Olympiad, in Sydney, AustraliaUEFA Euro 2000 — 11th European association football championshipGreat Recession — 2007–2009 international economic declineYear 2000 problem — class of computer bugs related to dates beginning in the year 2000eurovision-song-contest-2000-45th-edition-of-the-eurovisio-2000