Germany has officially participated in every Eurovision Song Contest since its inaugural edition in 1956, except in 1996 when its entry did not qualify past the audio-only pre-selection round, and consequently was not seen in the broadcast final and does not count as one of Germany's 67 appearances. No other country has been represented as many times. Along with France, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom, Germany is one of the "Big Five" countries that are automatically prequalified for the final, due to their participant broadcasters being the largest financial contributors to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). The final is broadcast in Germany on ARD's flagship channel, Das Erste.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 with the song "No No Never", written by Jane Comerford, and performed by the band Texas Lightning. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR), organised the national final Der deutsche Vorentscheid 2006 – 50 Jahre Grand Prix in order to select their entry for the contest. The national final took place on 9 March 2006 and featured three competing acts with the winner being selected through public televoting. "No No Never" performed by Texas Lightning was selected as the German entry for Athens after gaining 365,361 of votes.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2002 with the song "I Can't Live Without Music", composed by Ralph Siegel, with lyrics by Bernd Meinunger, and performed by Corinna May. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR), organised the national final Countdown Grand Prix Eurovision 2002 in order to select their entry for the contest. The national final took place on 22 February 2002 and featured fifteen competing acts with the winner being selected through two rounds of public televoting. "I Can't Live Without Music" performed by Corinna May won after placing first in the top three during the first round of voting and ultimately gaining 41.1% of the votes in the second round.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 with the song "Disappear" written by Remee, Thomas Troelsen and Hanne Sørvaag. The song was performed by the group No Angels. The German entry for the 2008 contest in Belgrade, Serbia was selected through the national final Der deutsche Vorentscheid 2008 – Wer singt für Deutschland?, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 6 March 2008 and featured five competing acts with the winner being selected through two rounds of public televoting. "Disappear" performed by No Angels was selected as the German entry for Belgrade after gaining 50.5% of the votes in the second round.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 with the song "Let's Get Happy", composed by Ralph Siegel, with lyrics by Bernd Meinunger, and performed by Louise Hoffner, more commonly referred to as Lou. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR), organised the national final Countdown Grand Prix Eurovision 2003 in order to select their entry for the contest. The national final took place on 7 March 2003 and featured fourteen competing acts with the winner being selected through two rounds of public voting. "Let's Get Happy" performed by Lou was selected as the German entry after placing second in the top three during the first round of voting and ultimately gaining 38% of the vote in the second round.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1990 with the song "Frei zu leben", composed by Ralph Siegel, with lyrics by Michael Kunze, and performed by Chris Kempers and Daniel Kovac. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), selected their entry through a national final.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 with the song "Miss Kiss Kiss Bang" written by Alex Christensen and Steffen Häfelinger. The song was performed by Alex Swings Oscar Sings!, consisting of producer Alex Christensen and singer Oscar Loya. The German entry for the 2009 contest in Moscow, Russia was internally selected by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The announcement of "Miss Kiss Kiss Bang" as the German entry occurred on 9 February 2009 and the presentation of the song occurred during the Echo Music Prize awards show on 21 February 2009.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1979 with the song "Dschinghis Khan", composed by Ralph Siegel, with lyrics by Bernd Meinunger, and performed by the group Dschinghis Khan. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), selected their entry through a national final.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1982 with the song "Ein bißchen Frieden", composed by Ralph Siegel, with lyrics by Bernd Meinunger, and performed by Nicole. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), selected their entry through a national final. The entry eventually won the Eurovision Song Contest.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1986 with the song "Über die Brücke geh'n", written by Hans Blum, and performed by Ingrid Peters. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), selected their entry through a national final.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2001 with the song "Wer Liebe lebt" written by Gino Trovatello, Matthias Stingl, and Eva Richter, and performed by Michelle. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR), organised the national final Countdown Grand Prix Eurovision 2001 in order to select their entry for the contest. The national final took place on 2 March 2001 and featured twelve competing acts with the winner being selected through two rounds of public televoting. "Wer Liebe lebt" performed by Michelle was selected as the German entry after placing first in the top three during the first round of voting and ultimately gaining 36.6% of the votes in the second round.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1998 with the song "Guildo hat euch lieb!", written by Alf Igel, and performed by Guildo Horn. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR), organised the national final Countdown Grand Prix 1998 in order to select their entry for the contest. The national final took place on 26 February 1998 and featured eleven competing acts with the winner being selected through public televoting. "Guildo hat euch lieb!" performed by Guildo Horn won the national final after gaining 426,050 of the votes.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1980 with the song "Theater", composed by Ralph Siegel, with lyrics by Bernd Meinunger, and performed by Katja Ebstein. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), selected their entry through a national final. This was Ebstein's third Eurovision appearance; she had previously represented Germany in 1970 and 1971, finishing third on both occasions.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1981 with the song "Johnny Blue", composed by Ralph Siegel, with lyrics by Bernd Meinunger, and performed by Lena Valaitis. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), selected their entry through a national final. Valaitis had previously taken part in the German final in 1976.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1983 with the song "Rücksicht", composed by Michael Reinecke, with lyrics by Volker Lechtenbrink, and performed by duo Hoffmann & Hoffmann. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), selected their entry through a national final. In addition, BR was also the host broadcaster and staged the event at the Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle in Munich, after winning the previous edition with the song "Ein bißchen Frieden" by Nicole.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1984 with the song "Aufrecht geh'n", composed by Michael Reinecke, with lyrics by Michael Kunze, and performed by Mary Roos. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), selected their entry through a national final. Roos had previously represented Germany in 1972, where she had finished third.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1985 with the song "Für alle", written by Hanne Haller, and performed by the band Wind. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), selected their entry through a national final. This was the first of three appearances by Wind at Eurovision; they would also represent Germany in 1987 and 1992.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1987 with the song "Laß die Sonne in dein Herz", composed by Ralph Siegel, with lyrics by Bernd Meinunger, and performed by the band Wind. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), selected their entry through a national final. This was the second of three appearances by Wind at Eurovision; they had previously finished second for Germany in 1985 and would return to the contest in 1992. The Eurovision performance included future Milli Vanilli member Rob Pilatus as a backing singer.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1988 with the song "Lied für einen Freund", composed by Ralph Siegel, with lyrics by Bernd Meinunger, and performed by Maxi and Chris Garden. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), selected their entry through a national final. Maxi and Chris Garden had finished second in the 1987 national final.
Germany was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 with the song "Taken by a Stranger", written by Gus Seyffert, Nicole Morier, and Monica Birkenes, and performed by Lena. The German participating broadcaster on behalf of ARD, Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR), organised the national final Unser Song für Deutschland in order to select their entry for the contest, after having previously selected the performer internally. In addition, NDR was also the host broadcaster and staged the event at the Düsseldorf Arena in Düsseldorf, after winning the previous edition with the song "Satellite" also performed by Lena.
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