A large-scale celebration of the 70th anniversary of the Eurovision Song Contest will take place in Vienna. The grand final of the contest will feature iconic participants from past years.
This was announced on the competition website.
As reported by the Austrian broadcaster ORF, as part of the special interval act ” Celebration! – A Grand Meeting of Eurovision Stars” performers who have become symbols of the contest will take to the stage. Among them, in particular, are two representatives of Ukraine: the 2004 winner Ruslana and Verka Serdyuchka , who took second place in 2007.
In addition, the interval act will feature:
- Alexander Rybak — Norway, 2009, 1st place ;
- Erika Wickman — Finland, 2025, 11th place;
- Christian Kostov — Bulgaria, 2017, 2nd place;
- Lordi — Finland, 2006, 1st place;
- Max Mutzke — Germany, 2004, 8th place;
- Miriana Conte – Malta, 2025, did not make it to the final.
Separately, the organizers announced the opening of the first semi-final: it will be hosted by 1972 winner Vicky Leandros , who will perform an updated version of her hit L'amour est bleu – a song that was performed in Vienna back in 1967. Then the singer took fourth place.
The festive program will also be joined by Austrian musician Parov Stelar and last year's winner JJ with the premiere of a new composition.
About Eurovision 2026
70th Anniversary Eurovision Song Contest will be held in Vienna, following JJ's victory last year with the song Wasted Love.
The grand final is scheduled for May 16, 2026 , with the semi-final shows on May 12 and 14. The show will take place at Austria's largest indoor arena, the Wiener Stadthalle.
35 countries will participate in the contest, of which 30 will compete in the semi-finals. According to the results of the draw, Ukraine will perform in the second semi-final. Our country will be represented by singer Leléka with the song Ridnym — she received the maximum 10 points from the audience and the jury.
Up to 20 semi-final winners will advance to the final. In addition, the “Big Five” countries (Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy) will automatically advance to the final, with the exception of Spain , which declined to participate for the first time in the history of the contest, and last year's winner Austria.