Main points
- This year, Eurovision celebrates its 70th anniversary, and Vienna is preparing to host the contest with the first semi-final on May 12.
- Ukraine will be represented by LELÉKA with the song Ridnym in the second semi-final on May 14, and bookmakers predict it to place 10th.
Eurovision / Channel 24 Collage
This year, the Eurovision Song Contest celebrates its 70th anniversary. Vienna is preparing to host the show, the first semi-final of which will take place exactly in a week, on May 12. However, Ukrainians are waiting for the second semi-final, on May 14, because that is when LELÉKA will perform with the song Ridnym. Yesterday, the singer arrived in the Austrian capital.
- 1 One step closer to victory, but without a crystal microphone
- 2 Countries that consistently perform poorly
While everyone is waiting for Eurovision 2026, Channel 24 suggests remembering which countries were one step closer to victory, but never took first place, and which are consistently among the outsiders.
One step closer to victory, but without a crystal microphone
- Malta
Malta made its Eurovision debut in 1971, with Joe Grek's song Marija l-Maltija. The country has come close to winning twice, but that was a long time ago.
In 2002, Ira Losko (7th Wonder) took second place, and in 2005, Chiara Siracusa (Angel). This year, bookmakers predict Malta will come in 11th place, represented by Aidan with the song Bella.
Aidan – Bella: watch the video online
- Cyprus
Cyprus has been participating in the song contest since 1981. The country's best result was in 2018, when Eleni Foureira became the silver medalist – her song Fuego is a real hit.
Cyprus has missed Eurovision three times: in 1988, 2001, and 2014. This year, the fiery Antigone Buxton will compete for victory with the song Jalla, but the singer is not currently the bookmakers' favorite.
Antigone Buxton – Jalla: watch the video online
- Croatia
Croatia has competed in Eurovision since 1993, missing out in 2014 and 2015. The country has reached the final 20 times, but has never won first place.
The country's representative in 2024 became a real sensation. Bookmakers even predicted Baby Lasagna to win, but he lost to Swiss artists Nemo.
This year, Croatia will be represented at Eurovision by the band Lelek with the song Andromeda. However, it seems that the band will not win the crystal microphone, as they are predicted to place 16th.
Lelek – Andromeda: watch the video online
- Bulgaria
Bulgaria debuted in 2005. The first representative was the jazz band Kaffe with the song Lorraine, but the musicians did not make it to the final. In 2017, Christian Kostov left the country. His track Beautiful Mess became one of the audience's favorites. The performer brought Bulgaria its best result – 2nd place.
In 2026, Bulgarian singer Dara will compete with the song Bangaranga. A week before the start of Eurovision, bookmakers predict her to finish only 14th.
Dara – Bangaranga: watch the video online
Countries that consistently perform poorly
- San Marino
Having made its debut in 2008, San Marino has only made it to the grand final three times: in 2014, 2019, and 2021, but the country has never been able to make it into the top ten.
San Marino's best result came from Turkish singer Serhat. He came in 19th in 2019. This year, the country sent Italian singer Senit, who was considered an underdog by bookmakers.
Zenit – Superstar: watch the video online
- Montenegro
Montenegro has only made it to the final twice: in 2014 and 2015. The country's debut at Eurovision was also unsuccessful: in 2007, Stefan Fadi took 22nd place in the semi-final.
In 2015, Montenegro was represented in Vienna by singer Knez, who came in 13th place. His result is the best for the country so far. In a week, Tamara Živković will perform on stage.
Tamara Zhivkovic – Nova zora: watch the video online
- Slovakia
Slovakia has only participated in the song contest seven times, reaching the final three times. The country has not sent a representative to Eurovision since 2013.
In 1996, Slovak singer Marcel Palonder performed on stage with the song Kým nás máš. He took 18th place, a result that has not been surpassed by any Slovak representative to this day.
It should be noted that Ukraine is one of the most successful countries in the history of Eurovision. It debuted at the contest in 2003 and has since won three times: in 2004, 2016, and 2022.
Bookmakers are currently predicting 10th place for this year's representative, LELÉKA. The artist is not revealing the details of her act, but it is known that Ilya Dutsyk became the director.