Music He represents Switzerland at the Eurovision Song Contest for fans
He found music thanks to the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC): For Francisco Borges Ribeiro, 2025 is special because the music competition takes place in Switzerland - and also because he will be competing in the Fanvision Contest, the competition for ESC fans, in the summer.
31.03.2025, 06:31
SDA
It almost feels as if he has to organize something, as if he has a huge responsibility. Francisco Borges Ribeiro is visibly excited about the fact that the ESC will be held in Basel in May: "It's the first time for me that the ESC is taking place where I live," he tells the Keystone-SDA news agency.
Borges Ribeiro remembers the moment that brought him to music well. It was in 2009, the ESC final was on television. When a singer played his violin to a pounding beat, Borges Ribeiro, who was four years old at the time, immediately fell under the spell of this music. It was the Norwegian participant Alexander Rybak who won the competition with the song "Fairytale". "Later that evening, I told my father that I wanted to play the violin."
Inspiration Alexander Rybak
The violin is no longer his instrument, today the 20-year-old sings. Borges Ribeiro is studying musical theater at the Neuchâtel Conservatory. Singing, dancing and theater are on the program here. As if that wasn't enough, the ESC fan, who lives in Biel, is studying computer science, mathematics and physics in Bern.
Since Alexander Rybak's ESC victory, Borges Ribeiro has followed the music competition closely every year. This starts with the national preliminary rounds of the participating countries. If he can, he also travels to the host country for the show - in 2018, for example, at the age of 13, to Lisbon.
He knew: "Nemo will win"
Or last year in Malmö: "When I saw the song 'The Code' live in the semi-final, it confirmed that Nemo was the favorite," recalls Borges Ribeiro. "It even made me cry a little." The applause in the arena was so overwhelming that Borges Ribeiro knew: "Nemo will win this thing."
As a teenager, it wasn't so easy to meet like-minded people who shared his passion, says Borges Ribeiro. He was able to inspire his partner, who accompanied him to Sweden last year. Then one day he came across the Eurovision Club Switzerland. This is one of over 40 fan clubs from all over Europe that are affiliated to the umbrella organization Générale des Amateurs de l'Eurovision, or OGAE for short. "It's really special when you're suddenly among so many people who share the same enthusiasm for the ESC," says Borges Ribeiro. "There was an instant bond between me and the others, we're like a family."
For Switzerland at the ESC for fans
In addition to hosting the ESC in Basel, there is another highlight for Borges Ribeiro this year: in July, he will be competing for Switzerland in the Fanvision Contest. The music competition is a cover version of the original ESC, so to speak, and is aimed at fans. The fan clubs of the participating countries each send one of their members into the race. It will take place in Malta in 2025. Francisco Borges Ribeiro will therefore be competing on behalf of the Swiss fans.
Which song he will perform is still a secret. A song that has been sung at an ESC or national preliminary round must be chosen, regardless of the country. Borges Ribeiro only revealed this much: "It will be a modern song that was performed at the ESC final in 2019." Although he would have the option of instrumental or dance support, he wanted to keep his performance simple and intimate. "Instead of a lot of bling-bling, it should be a very personal performance," says the budding musical performer.
Austria is the current favorite
Before the cover version of the ESC, however, he is going to the original musical event. The fan also had to fight hard for tickets for Basel. He would actually have liked to attend both semi-finals and the final, as well as all the afternoon preview shows, he says. He managed to get tickets for the live show of the first semi-final and three afternoon preview shows, which take place before the actual live show. He would watch everything else at home.
At the beginning of March, the Finnish entry "Ich Komme" was still high up on Borges Ribeiro's favorite list of this year's ESC songs. In it, the artist Erika Vikang sings about sexual self-determination. When the Austrian entry, the song "Wasted Love" by countertenor JJ, was announced, it topped Borges Riberio's top list: "He has an incredible voice and the lyrics are also very good."
And what does he think of Zoë Më's "Voyage"? "I was so relieved that she doesn't sing in English," says Borges Riberio. "I think she and her collaborators did a great job, the song is coherent and brings a refreshing calm to the competition." Since the chanson was released, he has been listening to it non-stop every day. He has already rehearsed the song himself vocally and plays it on the piano. And: "French always works well at the ESC, Europeans probably find the language particularly romantic."
