mutual agreement. The six finalists were announced in a random order after the semi-finals on a separate live stream. In addition, it was announced that the jury in the final would not know the results of the semi-final jury to avoid interference. In the final, only the winner was announced during the televised broadcast. Participating countries The final list of participants were announced on 2 February 2018, with eighteen countries confirming their participation, the highest number since . made their debut whilst seven countries, , , , , , and , all returned to the Eurovision Young Musicians in 2018. Belgium last participated in 2006, Estonia in , Greece in , Israel in and Spain in . Russia and host country, the United Kingdom, most recently took part in . Semi-finals The semi-finals consisted of six hour-long shows spread over two days. A total of eighteen countries took part, of which six qualified to the grand final. In each semi-final, three musicians performed, either solo or with piano accompaniment, for a total of 18 minutes each. 18 August 19 August Final Six contestants were selected by the first jury to progress to the Final and the second decided the winner of Eurovision Young Musicians 2018. Each finalist performed one or more movements of a single musical work, accompanied by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, for up to 12 minutes. During the live shows interval, the orchestra performed "Hedwig's Theme" from the Harry Potter score although this was not included in the televised broadcast. The winner received a custom-made engraved trophy, a cash prize of €7,000, and a performance opportunity with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in a forthcoming season. The runner-up received a cash prize of €3,000. Broadcasting The following countries, listed in order of broadcasting dates, confirmed that they would broadcast the contest along with the dates of broadcasting schedules. Alongside television and radio, coverage was also livestreamed on the online platforms of the broadcasters in Belgium, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Poland, San Marino, Slovenia, Spain and the UK. The semi-finals and the final were broadcast live on the internet via the official YouTube channel of the competition. Semi-finals Final Other countries For a country to be eligible for potential participation in the Eurovision Young Musicians, it needs to be an active member of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). It is unknown whether the EBU issue invitations of participation