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Australia has been a regular contender in Eurovision for the past decade, but how does a nation thousands of miles from Europe get to participate?

As the much-loved song contest gets underway this week in Basel, Switzerland, fans might be scratching their heads over Australia's inclusion.

The first semi-final took place on Tuesday, 13th May, bidding farewell to Slovenia, Belgium, Azerbaijan, Croatia and Cyprus.

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Tonight (Thursday, 15th May), Australian crooner Go-Jo will take to the stage with his single Milkshake Man, hoping to secure a spot in the finals.

He'll be up against competitors from Ireland, Denmark, , Austria and more, but how is it that he's able to compete when isn't part of Europe?, reports .

Why Australia is able to compete in Eurovision

Australia has been sending entries to Eurovision for the last decade, fuelled by years of passion for the contest Down Under.

The competition was first aired on the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), an associated member of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), back in 1983 and has been broadcast annually ever since.

The SBS coverage has been a massive hit from the start, and Australia has provided its own commentators for the show since 2001. From 2010-2014, SBS even conducted their own televote for Australian viewers, although these votes didn't contribute to the overall result.

2015 marked the inaugural year of Australia's actual participation, despite their first appearance at the song contest occurring two years prior.

During the 2013 competition in Malmö, Sweden, SBS presented a pre-recorded video titled Greetings from Australia (also known as Why Australia Loves Eurovision) to celebrate 30 years of broadcasting the show. The subsequent year, the DR (Danish Broadcasting Corporation) allowed Australian singer Jessica Mauboy to perform during the interval of the second semi-final in Copenhagen.

The 2015 contest in Vienna, Austria was the first time Australia was officially permitted to perform. The privilege was given to American Idol winner Guy Sebastian, who secured an impressive fifth place with his song Tonight Again.

Both the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster ORF decided to allow Australia not only to participate, but also to proceed directly to the final, in honour of the 60th Anniversary of Eurovision.

They bypassed the semi-finals to minimise the risk of European countries being eliminated, but the EBU and SBS confirmed that if Australia were to win, they would not host the contest the following year, as is customary.

Australia has been competing ever since, only failing to qualify in 2021 and 2024.

Their best performance came just a year after their debut, when singer Dami Im finished second overall with her song Sound of Silence at the 2016 final in Stockholm, Sweden.

The Eurovision Grand Final airs Saturday, 17th May at 8pm on One.

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