71 songs written by 147 songwriters have won the Eurovision Song Contest, an international song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union. The contest, which has been broadcast every year since its debut in 1956 (with the exception of 2020), is one of the longest-running television programmes in the world. The contest's winner has been determined using numerous voting techniques throughout its history; centre to these have been the awarding of points to countries by juries or televoters. The country awarded the most points is declared the winner. [1] The first Eurovision Song Contest was not won on points, but by votes (two per country), and only the winner was announced. [2]
There have been 68 contests, with one winner each year except for the tied 1969 contest, which had four. 27 countries have won the contest, with Switzerland winning the first contest in 1956. The countries with the highest number of wins are Ireland and Sweden with seven wins each. Two people have won more than once as a performer: Ireland's Johnny Logan, who performed "What's Another Year" in 1980 and "Hold Me Now" in 1987, and Sweden's Loreen, who performed "Euphoria" in 2012 and "Tattoo" in 2023. Logan is also one of seven songwriters to have written more than one winning entry ("Hold Me Now" in 1987 and "Why Me?" in 1992, performed by Linda Martin), [3] and is the only person to have three Eurovision victories to their credit, as either singer, songwriter or both. The other six songwriters with more than one winning entry to their credit are Willy van Hemert (Netherlands, 1957 and 1959), Yves Dessca (Monaco, 1971 and Luxembourg, 1972), Rolf Løvland (Norway, 1985 and 1995), Brendan Graham (Ireland, 1994 and 1996), and Thomas G:son and Peter Boström (both for Sweden's entries in 2012 and 2023).
Relatively few winners of the Eurovision Song Contest have gone on to achieve major success in the music industry. The most notable winners who have gone on to become international stars are ABBA, who won the 1974 contest for Sweden with their song "Waterloo", [4] and Céline Dion, who won the 1988 contest for Switzerland with the song " Ne partez pas sans moi ". [5] More recently, Duncan Laurence, who won the 2019 contest for the Netherlands with "Arcade", experienced worldwide streaming success with the song as a sleeper hit throughout 2020 and 2021, with the song becoming the most streamed Eurovision song on Spotify. [6] while Måneskin, winners of the 2021 contest for Italy with " Zitti e buoni ", subsequently achieved worldwide popularity in the months following their victory. [7]
Since 2008, the winner has been awarded an official winner's trophy of the Eurovision Song Contest. The trophy is a handmade piece of sandblasted glass in the shape of a 1950s microphone. [8] The songwriters and composers of the winning entry receive smaller versions of the trophy. The original design was created by Kjell Engman of Kosta Boda, who specialises in glass art. [9] The trophy is notoriously fragile, and the support infamously broke on stage right after being received by Alexander Rybak, the winner of the 2009 contest, [10] and by Nemo, winner of the 2024 contest. [11] The 2013 winner, Emmelie de Forest, also revealed in an appearance in the 2023 contest that her trophy also broke in the exact same spot. [12] Despite that, no redesigns were made since.
The following individuals have won the Eurovision Song Contest as a performer or songwriter more than once.
Wins | Name | Wins as performer | Wins as songwriter |
---|---|---|---|
3 | Johnny Logan | 1980, 1987 | 1987, 1992 |
2 | Willy van Hemert | — | 1957, 1959 |
Yves Dessca | — | 1971, 1972 | |
Rolf Løvland | 1995 | 1985, 1995 | |
Brendan Graham | — | 1994, 1996 | |
Loreen | 2012, 2023 | 2023 | |
Peter Boström | — | 2012, 2023 | |
Thomas G:son | — |
Eleven Eurovision winners (alongside three non-winners) were featured at the special concert Congratulations: 50 Years of the Eurovision Song Contest in 2005, in which ABBA's "Waterloo" was voted the most popular song of the contest's first fifty years. [85]
Ireland and Sweden have won seven times, more than any other country. Ireland also won the contest for three consecutive years (1992, 1993, 1994), the only country to ever do so. Three countries have won twice in a row: Spain (1968 and 1969), Luxembourg (1972 and 1973) and Israel (1978 and 1979). Serbia is the only country to win with its debut entry (in 2007), although Serbia had competed previously as part of Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro. By contrast, Portugal holds the record for waiting the longest to achieve their first win, doing so in 2017; 53 years after their first appearance in the contest. Austria holds the record for longest wait in between wins, having won for the first time in 1966 and a second time in 2014. Under the voting system used between 1975 and 2015, the winner of the contest was decided by the final voting nation on eleven occasions. [N 1]
Changes to the voting system, including a steady growth in the number of countries participating and voting, means that the points earned are not comparable across the decades. Portugal's Salvador Sobral holds the record of the highest number of points in the contest's history, earning 758 with the song "Amar pelos dois". Norway's Alexander Rybak holds the largest margin of victory in absolute points, a 169-point cushion over second place in 2009. Italy's Gigliola Cinquetti holds the record for largest victory by percentage, scoring almost three times as many as second place (49 points compared with 17 by the runner-up) in the 1964 contest. The lowest winning score is the 18 points (of the 160 total votes cast by 16 countries) scored by each of the four winning countries in 1969.
Under the voting system used from 1975 until 2015, in which each country gives maximum points to its first place choice, Sweden's Loreen won the 2012 contest with the most ever first place votes earned, receiving first place votes from 18 of 41 countries (excluding themselves). The 1976 winner for the United Kingdom, Brotherhood of Man, holds the record of the highest average score per participating country, with an average of 9.65 points received per country. 2011 Azerbaijani winners Ell and Nikki hold the lowest average score for a winning song under that system, receiving 5.14 points per country.
Around two-thirds of the winning songs were performed in the second half of the final. According to the official statistics, until 2019, only 34.3% of the winning songs were performed in the first half, including 3 of the 4 winners in 1969. The only song to win without being clearly in one half or the other was the Israeli entry "Hallelujah" in 1979, which was drawn 10th out of 19 songs. Between 2005 and 2013, all the winning songs were performed in the second half of the final's running order. [86]
The United Kingdom has finished second sixteen times at Eurovision (most recently in 2022), more than any other country. France has finished third and fourth eight times at Eurovision (most recently respectively in 1981 and in 2024), and Sweden has finished fifth nine times at Eurovision (most recently in 2019). The country with the most top three places that has never won the contest is Malta, having finished second in 2002 and 2005 and third in 1992 and 1998. Another island nation, Iceland, has also finished second twice, in 1999 and 2009. With Portugal achieving its first win in 2017, Malta now also holds the record for longest wait for a first win, having first entered the contest in 1971 (although Cyprus has more winless appearances, with 36 since debuting in 1981, due to Malta taking a break from 1976 through 1990). Spain holds the current record for longest drought by a winning country, having last won in 1969. They are followed by France (1977) and Belgium (1986).
There is no official runner-up for two of the contests – 1956 and 1969. In 1956 only the winner, Switzerland, was announced, whilst there were speculative reports that Germany ended up in second place with "Im Wartesaal zum großen Glück" by Walter Andreas Schwarz,[ citation needed ] given that Germany was chosen to host the 1957 contest. In 1969, four songs shared first place by achieving the same number of points; fifth place was achieved by Switzerland, which is not considered an official runner-up, because of the draw for first place.
Since the reintroduction of the juries alongside televoting in 2009, the jury and the televote awarded the most points to the same entry on only six occasions: in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2017. Two winners have won without placing first in either area: Ukraine's Jamala in 2016, who finished second in the jury vote behind Australia and second in the televote behind Russia, and the Netherlands' Duncan Laurence in 2019, who placed third behind North Macedonia and Sweden in the jury vote, and second behind Norway in the televote.
Sweden won both the combined vote and jury vote in 2015 and 2023, represented by Måns Zelmerlöw and Loreen (the latter of whom had also won in 2012), respectively. However, in the televote, Sweden came third behind Italy and Russia in 2015, and second behind Finland in 2023. Switzerland's Nemo won the combined vote and jury vote in 2024, but placed fifth in the televote behind Croatia, Israel, Ukraine and France.
Azerbaijan's Ell and Nikki in 2011, Israel's Netta in 2018, Italy's Måneskin in 2021 and Ukraine's Kalush Orchestra in 2022 all won both the combined vote and televote. However, in the jury vote, Azerbaijan came second behind Italy in 2011, Israel came third behind Austria and Sweden in 2018, Italy came fourth behind Switzerland, France and Malta in 2021, and Ukraine came fourth behind the United Kingdom, Sweden and Spain in 2022. [87]
Year | Country | Jury place | Televote place | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2009 | Norway | 1st | 1st | [88] |
2010 | Germany | 1st | 1st | [89] |
2011 | Azerbaijan | 2nd | 1st | [90] |
2012 | Sweden | 1st | 1st | [91] |
2013 | Denmark | 1st | 1st | [92] |
2014 | Austria | 1st | 1st | [93] |
2015 | Sweden | 1st | 3rd | [94] |
2016 | Ukraine | 2nd | 2nd | [95] |
2017 | Portugal | 1st | 1st | [96] |
2018 | Israel | 3rd | 1st | [97] |
2019 | Netherlands | 3rd | 2nd | [98] |
2021 | Italy | 4th | 1st | [99] |
2022 | Ukraine | 4th | 1st | [100] |
2023 | Sweden | 1st | 2nd | [101] |
2024 | Switzerland | 1st | 5th | [102] |
The first repeat winner was the Netherlands, completed in 1959. France was the first country to win three times (completed in 1962), four times (completed in 1969), and five times (completed in 1977). Ireland was the first country to win six times (completed in 1994) and seven times (completed in 1996). The first country to win two consecutive contests was Spain, from 1968 to 1969. The first country to win three consecutive contests was Ireland, from 1992 to 1994.
† | Inactive –countries which participated in the past but did not appear in the most recent contest, and have not announced their appearance in the upcoming contest |
◇ | Ineligible –countries whose broadcasters are no longer part of the EBU and are therefore ineligible to participate |
‡ | Former –countries which previously participated but no longer exist |
Wins | Country | Years | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
7 | Ireland | 1970, 1980, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996 | [103] |
Sweden | 1974, 1984, 1991, 1999, 2012, 2015, 2023 | [104] | |
5 | France | 1958, 1960, 1962, 1969 , 1977 | [105] |
Luxembourg | 1961, 1965, 1972, 1973, 1983 | [106] | |
United Kingdom | 1967, 1969 , 1976, 1981, 1997 | [107] | |
Netherlands | 1957, 1959, 1969 , 1975, 2019 | [108] | |
4 | Israel | 1978, 1979, 1998, 2018 | [109] |
3 | Norway | 1985, 1995, 2009 | [110] |
Denmark | 1963, 2000, 2013 | [111] | |
Italy | 1964, 1990, 2021 | [112] | |
Ukraine | 2004, 2016, 2022 | [113] | |
Switzerland | 1956, 1988, 2024 | [114] | |
2 | Spain | 1968, 1969 | [115] |
Germany | 1982, 2010 | [116] | |
Austria | 1966, 2014 | [117] | |
1 | Monaco † | 1971 | [118] |
Belgium | 1986 | [119] | |
Yugoslavia ‡ | 1989 | [120] | |
Estonia | 2001 | [121] | |
Latvia | 2002 | [122] | |
Turkey † | 2003 | [123] | |
Greece | 2005 | [124] | |
Finland | 2006 | [125] | |
Serbia | 2007 | [126] | |
Russia ◇ | 2008 | [127] | |
Azerbaijan | 2011 | [128] | |
Portugal | 2017 | [129] |
1969 is in italics to indicate the joint (four-way) win.
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The winner of the Eurovision Song Contest is selected by a positional voting system. The most recent system was implemented in the 2023 contest. Each participating country is awarded two sets of 12, 10, 8–1 points, based on their ten favourite songs. One set of picks from their professional jury, and the other from televoting. Only televoting is used in the semi-finals. Both jury and televoting is used in the final.
A detailed set of rules and obligations, which all participating broadcasters and participants in the annual Eurovision Song Contest must uphold, is produced annually ahead of each edition of the international song contest. These rules are drafted by the contest organisers, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), and approved by the contest's reference group. They typically outline which songs may be deemed eligible for entry, the format of the contest, the voting system employed to select a contest winner and how the results of this vote are presented to the televised audience, the overall values of the contest, and distribution and broadcasting rights through television, radio and streaming services.
Croatia was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1999 with the song "Marija Magdalena", composed by Tonči Huljić, with lyrics by Vjekoslava Huljić, and performed by Doris Dragović. The Croatian participating broadcaster, Hrvatska radiotelevizija (HRT), selected its entry for the contest through Dora 1999. Dragović had previously represented Yugoslavia in 1986 placing eleventh with the song "Željo moja".
Greece competed in the Eurovision Song Contest 2001, held on 12 May 2001 at Parken Stadium in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Greek broadcaster Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation (ERT) organised a public selection process entitled Ellinikós Telikós 2001 to determine its entry for the contest. Held on 6 March 2001 in Athens, the event saw nine songs compete to be the Greek entry; the results were determined by a combination of jury and televoting. The song "Die for You", written by Nikos Terzis and Antonis Pappas, and performed by Antique received the most votes and was selected to represent the nation. Greece performed 22nd out of the 23 countries competing in the contest and placed third with 147 points, marking their highest placement in the annual event to this point.
Belgium was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1998 with the song "Dis oui", written by Philippe Swan, and performed by Mélanie Cohl. The Belgian participating broadcaster, Walloon Radio-télévision belge de la Communauté française (RTBF), selected its entry through a national final. The entry placed sixth out of the 25 entries, scoring 122 points.
Slovenia was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2002 with the song "Samo ljubezen", composed by Robert Pešut, with lyrics by Barbara Pešut, and performed by the drag act Sestre. The Slovene participating broadcaster, Radiotelevizija Slovenija (RTVSLO), held the national final Evrovizijska Melodija 2002 in order to select its entry for the contest. 18 entries competed in the national final which consisted of two shows: a semi-final and a final. Entries were selected to advance from the semi-final based on a public televote and a jury panel. Ten entries qualified to compete in the final where "Samo ljubezen" performed by Sestre was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from two thematical juries.
Malta was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2002 with the song "7th Wonder", composed by Philip Vella, with lyrics by Gerard James Borg, and performed by Ira Losco. The Maltese participating broadcaster, Public Broadcasting Services (PBS), selected its entry for the contest through the national final Malta Song for Europe 2002. The competition consisted of a final, held on 15 and 16 February 2002, where "7th Wonder" performed by Ira Losco eventually emerged as the winning entry after scoring the most points from a five-member jury and a public televote.
Croatia was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2000 with the song "Kad zaspu anđeli", composed by Zdenko Runjić, with lyrics by Nenad Ninčević, and performed by Goran Karan. The Croatian participating broadcaster, Hrvatska radiotelevizija (HRT), organised the national final Dora 2000 to select its entry for the contest. Twenty-six entries competed in the national final on 19 February 2000 and "Ostani" performed by Goran Karan was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from 20 regional juries and a public televote. The song was later retitled as "Kad zaspu anđeli".
Malta was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2000 with the song "Desire", composed by Philip Vella, with lyrics by Gerard James Borg, and performed by Claudette Pace. The Maltese participating broadcaster, Public Broadcasting Services (PBS), selected its entry for the contest through the national final Malta Song for Europe 2000. The competition consisted of a final, held on 14 and 15 February 2000, where "Desire" performed by Claudette Pace eventually emerged as the winning entry after scoring the most points from a seven-member jury.
Malta was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2001 with the song "Another Summer Night", composed by Paul Abela, with lyrics by Georgina Abela, and performed by Fabrizio Faniello. The Maltese participating broadcaster, Public Broadcasting Services (PBS), selected its entry for the contest through the national final Malta Song for Europe 2001. The competition consisted of a final, held on 2 and 3 February 2001, where "Another Summer Night" performed by Fabrizio Faniello eventually emerged as the winning entry after scoring the most points from a seven-member jury and a public televote.
Montenegro participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 with the song "Heaven" written by Dejan Božović and Adis Eminić. The song was performed by the group D mol. The Montenegrin broadcaster Radio i televizija Crne Gore (RTCG) organised the national final Montevizija 2019 in order to select the Montenegrin entry for the 2019 contest in Tel Aviv, Israel. Five entries competed in the national final on 9 February 2019 where the winner was selected over two rounds of voting. In the first round, the top two entries advanced to the superfinal following the combination of the votes of an international jury, a Montenegrin jury, a radio jury and public televoting. In the superfinal, "Heaven" performed by D-moll was selected as the winner entirely by a public televote, gaining 62% of the votes. The group was later renamed as D mol for the Eurovision Song Contest.
Italy participated in and won the Eurovision Song Contest 2021. Italian broadcaster RAI announced in October 2020 that the winning performer(s) of the Sanremo Music Festival 2021, later turning out to be Måneskin with "Zitti e buoni", would earn the right to represent the nation at the Eurovision Song Contest in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Måneskin eventually became the sixty-eighth winner of the Eurovision Song Contest and the first Italian entry to win the contest in 31 years. Italy received a total of 524 points, winning the public vote with 318 points and coming at fourth place in the jury vote with 206 points.
Albania participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy, with the song "Sekret" performed by Ronela Hajati. Its entry was selected through the national selection competition Festivali i Këngës organised by Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH) in December 2021. To this point, the nation had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 17 times since its first entry in 2004. Albania was drawn to compete in the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest, which took place on 10 May 2022. The nation failed to qualify for the final, placing 12th and scoring 58 points, marking their eighth non-qualification.
Estonia participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy, with "Hope" performed by Stefan. The Estonian broadcaster Eesti Rahvusringhääling (ERR) organised the national final Eesti Laul2022 in order to select the Estonian entry for the contest. The national final consisted of seven shows: four quarter-finals, two semi-finals and a final. Ten songs competed in each quarter-final and semi-final and five from each show as determined by a jury panel and public vote qualified to the final. In the final, the winner was selected over two rounds of voting. In the first round, a jury panel and a public vote selected the top three to qualify to the superfinal. In the superfinal, "Hope" performed by Stefan was selected as the winner entirely by a public vote.
The Czech Republic participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy, with the song "Lights Off" performed by the band We Are Domi. The Czech broadcaster Česká televize (ČT) organised the national final ESCZ 2022 in order to select the Czech entry for the 2022 contest. Seven entries competed in the national final and "Lights Off" performed by We Are Domi was announced as the winner on 16 December 2021 following the combination of votes from a twelve-member international jury panel, an international public vote and a Czech public vote.