18 countries united to let music win at the celebration of Junior Eurovision 2025 this afternoon: participants, format, running order, schedule, and how to watch the contest

The most eagerly awaited moment of the year has arrived for the inner child of any Eurovision fan! Today is that day when the magical atmosphere of excitement that Junior Eurovision conveys returns once again. And this time it does so from the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, which takes over from Madrid to host the 23rd edition of the festival after Georgia won last year with Andria Putkaradze and his song “To My Mom.”

So take note of all the details of the big event for this Saturday, December 13: the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2025 will take place this afternoon starting at 5:00 PM CET, live from a beautifully decorated Gymnastics Palace in the city of Tbilisi, Georgia, where a spectacular stage has been installed on which a total of 18 countries come together to celebrate cultural diversity, unity through music, and the unique values that Junior Eurovision promotes every year.

This 23rd edition of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest arrives with some visual and thematic changes, becoming the first event in the Eurovision family to adopt and premiere the contest’s renewed logo. The logo has been updated for the 70th anniversary of the senior version in 2026, reinterpreted with a more modern typeface while preserving its identity. In addition, this is the first junior edition to adopt the generic slogan “United by Music,” which the senior contest has kept permanently since 2023, thus no longer having a personalized slogan for each year. All of this comes with the purpose of unifying the brand that connects the junior and adult versions of Eurovision.

So far, 22 winners have written the history of Junior Eurovision alongside the rest of the participants who have been part of it. The most recent was Andria Putkaradze, who achieved the fourth victory for Georgia last year with his song “To My Mom.” Today his reign will take a new direction, and he will be responsible for handing over the trophy to the new artist who will continue writing the history of the festival. Who will it be?

Who is participating in Junior Eurovision 2025?

Artists from 18 countries will be the participants in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2025. They have traveled hundreds of kilometers to Tbilisi in pursuit of two great dreams: the first, to experience singing on a Eurovision stage and to be part of the most important music event in the world; the second, to win the festival. However, only one of them will be able to lift the coveted trophy, which will be decided by the public and the jury.

Would you like to meet them? This will be the running order of the 18 participating countries in Junior Eurovision 2025, together with their representatives, who are seeking to claim the iconic glass microphone trophy. Good luck to everyone and enjoy every moment! Tbilisi has welcomed you with open arms.

Where to watch Junior Eurovision 2025 online?

Although a record number of participating countries has not been reached, nor will this be the edition with the most broadcasting countries, the truth is that it comes close and will be one of the Junior Eurovision festivals broadcast by the highest number of countries, even though not all of them will air it on channels with maximum audience reach. In addition, the number of broadcasting countries equals that of last year in Madrid.

Thus, it is only surpassed by the 2003 and 2005 editions, when 22 countries broadcast the event, and by the 2004, 2007 and 2019 editions, when 21 countries aired the contest. This Tbilisi 2025 edition matches Madrid 2024, as well as the 2018 and 2021 editions, with 20 countries broadcasting the festival.

As, in addition to the 18 participating countries, two others will broadcast it without competing:

• Germany has taken a break this year but will broadcast the event as usual, in addition to having prepared a series of special programs for these days on the KiKA channel.
• Luxembourg will broadcast it for the second consecutive year via the RTL Zwee channel, and its debut in upcoming editions is expected.

Who will host Junior Eurovision 2025?

This edition will once again feature a hosting duo following last year’s trio in Madrid. For such a special occasion, with the festival returning to Georgian soil for the second time after hosting it in 2017, a pair has been chosen that combines musical excellence with journalistic professionalism. David Aladashvili and Liza Tsiklauri are the hosts who will welcome the 18 participants and millions of European viewers, promising a charismatic, elegant, and professional presentation from the stage of the Tbilisi Gymnastics Palace.

David Aladashvili is a figure who perfectly embodies the artistic spirit of the festival. Internationally recognized as a virtuous and sensitive pianist, David is not a new face to the contest’s followers in Georgia, as he has been the host of Ranina since 2018, the popular TV format that serves as the national preselection for Junior Eurovision.

Besides his media presence, Aladashvili stands out for his deep social and educational commitment; he is the artistic director of the National Youth Palace of Tbilisi and the founder of the “Young for Young” initiative, a project aimed at bringing classical music closer to new generations and supporting young talents, demonstrating that his connection with childhood and youth goes far beyond the cameras.

On the other hand, Liza Tsiklauri brings rigor and communicative experience to the hosting duo. A journalist by training from the Ivane Javakhishvili State University of Tbilisi, Liza is one of the most respected and beloved faces of Georgian public television.

Although she comes from a family dedicated to medicine and dreamed of becoming a professional tennis player in her childhood, she ultimately found her vocation in journalism, where she has established herself thanks to her naturalness and perfectionism. Her career at GPB, Georgian public television, endorses her as a communicator capable of handling the pressure of live broadcasting with ease, making this her great opportunity to showcase her talent before a massive international audience.

Throw your own party at home! Download the Junior Eurovision 2025 handbook and the scorecard

Once again, the ESCplus team has prepared the Junior Eurovision Festival Handbook. In it, you will find an initial introduction with detailed general information about the organization of this edition, an illustrated profile dedicated to each competing country, where you will find details about the song, its lyrics, and the biography of each performer, and a series of appendices at the end of the file where you can not only record the official votes cast during the festival but also your own votes, as if you were a professional jury member of the contest.