The Eurovision Song Contest is the world's largest live televised music event. Now in its 70th year, the competition continues to adapt to shifting technology, artistic trends and geopolitics. The 2026 final takes place on Saturday at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna, Austria, with 25 countries competing for the trophy.
The previous year's winner traditionally hosts the next edition. Austrian vocalist Johannes Pietsch, performing as JJ, won the 2025 contest in Basel, Switzerland, with his operatic entry "Wasted Love." That victory brought the contest back to Austria for 2026.
The competition is organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the world's largest public service media alliance. This year, 35 countries entered. The remaining participants competed in two semi-finals earlier in the week, with ten countries qualifying from each round of 15.
Four countries — Britain, France, Germany and Italy — automatically qualify for the final as major financial contributors to the EBU. Host nation Austria also holds a reserved slot. Together with the 20 semi-final qualifiers, the final features 25 acts.
Five nations withdrew in what has become the contest's largest-ever political boycott. Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland and Slovenia pulled out to protest Israel's continued participation, citing the war in Gaza. Meanwhile, Bulgaria, Moldova and Romania returned to the competition after previous absences.
Each participating broadcaster selects its act through a televised national selection show, an internal decision or a combination of both. The rules governing entries include the following requirements:
Songs must be original compositions lasting no longer than three minutes. Lead vocals must be performed live over a pre-recorded backing track. All performers must be at least 16 years old, and no more than six may appear on stage simultaneously.
Songs can be performed in any language — a rule in place since 1999 — but lyrics and performances must steer clear of political, commercial or offensive content.
All 35 participating countries vote in the final, and each country contributes two equally weighted sets of points.
The first set comes from a national jury of music industry professionals who score the acts after watching the second dress rehearsal. The second set comes from public viewers who vote on the night via telephone, text message or the official Eurovision app. A separate online vote open to viewers worldwide counts as one additional voting country, bringing the total to 36 voting entities.
Each jury and each national audience awards 12 points to their top choice, 10 to their second, then 8 through 1 for the remaining top ten. Countries cannot vote for their own entry.
The results are revealed in two stages. First, each country's jury votes are announced in turn. Then, all 36 sets of public audience votes are tallied and revealed one by one, starting from the lowest-scoring act and building toward the top, a format designed to maximise suspense. The winner receives a microphone-shaped trophy and performs their song one final time to close the show.
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