According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "
Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. The
European Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into six different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot. On 20 January 2014, a special allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. Portugal was placed into the second semi-final, to be held on 24 May 2012, and was scheduled to perform in the first half of the show. The running order for the semi-finals was decided through another draw on 20 March 2012 and Portugal was set to perform in position 6, following the entry from
Belarus and before the entry from
Ukraine. In Portugal, the three shows were broadcast on
RTP1,
RTP1 HD and
RTP Internacional with commentary by Pedro Granger. The second semi-final and the final were broadcast live, while the first semi-final was broadcast on delay. The Portuguese spokesperson, who announced the Portuguese votes during the final, was Joana Teles.
Semi-final Filipa Sousa took part in technical rehearsals on 15 and 18 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 23 and 24 May. This included the jury final where professional juries of each country watched and voted on the competing entries. The Portuguese performance featured Filipa Sousa wearing a golden dress performing a routine choreographed by Marco de Camillis, with five backing vocalists lined up behind the singer: Carla Ribero, Eduardo Marques, Filipe Fontenele, Joana Inacio and Pedro Coelho. The LED screens displayed images of old
Lisbon. At the end of the show, Portugal was not announced among the top 10 entries in the second semi-final and therefore failed to qualify to compete in the final. It was later revealed that Portugal placed thirteenth in the semi-final, receiving a total of 39 points.
Voting Voting during the three shows involved each country awarding points from 1-8, 10 and 12 as determined by a combination of 50% national
jury and 50%
televoting. Each nation's jury consisted of five music industry professionals who are citizens of the country they represent. This jury judged each entry based on: vocal capacity; the stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury was permitted to be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently. Following the release of the full split voting by the EBU after the conclusion of the competition, it was revealed that Portugal had placed thirteenth with the public televote and twelfth with the jury vote in the first semi-final. In the public vote, Portugal scored 37 points, while with the jury vote, Portugal scored 49 points. Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Portugal and awarded by Portugal in the second semi-final and grand final of the contest. The nation awarded its 12 points to Estonia in the semi-final and to Spain in the final of the contest.
Points awarded to Portugal Points awarded by Portugal Detailed voting results Semi-final 2 Jury points awarded in second semi-final:
Final Jury points awarded in the final: ==References==