Melodifestivalen is an annual song competition organised by Swedish public broadcasters Sveriges Television (SVT) and Sveriges Radio (SR). It determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Song Contest, and has been staged almost every year since 1959. In the early 2000s, the competition was the most popular television program in Sweden; it is also broadcast on radio and the Internet. In 2012, the heats averaged 3.3 million viewers, and over an estimated four million people in Sweden watched the final, almost half of the Swedish population.
Sweden has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 62 times since making its debut in 1958, missing only three contests since then. Since 1959, the Swedish entry has been chosen through an annual televised competition, known since 1967 as Melodifestivalen. At the 1997 contest, Sweden was one of the first five countries to adopt televoting. Sweden has hosted the contest seven times: three times in Stockholm, three times in Malmö and once in Gothenburg (1985).
Christer Samuel Björkman is a Swedish singer and television producer. He represented Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest 1992 with the song "I morgon är en annan dag". From 2002 to 2021, he served as a producer of Melodifestivalen, and has remained an important figure in the production of Melodifestivalen and the Eurovision Song Contest. He stepped down from this position after Melodifestivalen 2021, and is currently working at Voxovation, a Los Angeles-based company that focuses on expanding the Eurovision Song Contest brand into other markets.
Sanna Viktoria Nielsen is a Swedish singer, television presenter and musical theatre performer. On her seventh attempt, she won Melodifestivalen in 2014 with the song "Undo" and so represented Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 in Copenhagen, Denmark, finishing in 3rd place overall. Sanna was one of the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 commentators for Sweden and hosted Melodifestivalen 2015 along with comedian Robin Paulsson. She was announced as the new presenter for the sing-along show Allsång på Skansen for the summer of 2016. She hosted Eurovision The Party at the Tele2 Arena for the Eurovision Song Contest 2016.
Måns Petter Albert Sahlén Zelmerlöw is a Swedish pop singer and television presenter. He took part in Idol 2005, eventually finishing fifth, won the first season of Let's Dance, and scored a hit with his 2007 song "Cara Mia", which was his entry in that year's Melodifestivalen. Zelmerlöw was the host of Allsång på Skansen from 2011 to 2013. He participated in Melodifestivalen in 2007, 2009 and won in 2015. Zelmerlöw represented Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Heroes", winning the contest with 365 points. Zelmerlöw and Petra Mede co-hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 held in Stockholm.
Sweden was in their second Eurovision Song Contest represented by Brita Borg with the song "Augustin". The winning song was elected in the Swedish national final: Melodifestivalen 1959. Eight semi-finals were held on the radio. During the semi-finals, Sveriges Radio decided that the winning song would represent Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest 1959. The singer for Cannes had already been selected.
Sarah Dawn Finer is a Swedish singer, songwriter and actress. She is also known for playing Lynda Woodruff, a character created by Edward af Sillén to be the "official" spokesperson of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) in Melodifestivalen and the Eurovision Song Contest.
Following Herreys' victory in the previous year, Sweden were the hosts of the Eurovision Song Contest 1985. The venue chosen for the show was the country's second city, Gothenburg.
After Carola Häggkvist's win in the 1991 contest, Sweden was the host of the Eurovision Song Contest 1992, held in Malmö. Sveriges Television, the Swedish broadcaster, continued to use the Melodifestivalen format to select their entry.
Sweden was the host of the Eurovision Song Contest 2000 thanks to Charlotte Nilsson's victory the previous year. Sveriges Television chose to hold the contest in Sweden's capital, Stockholm. They were represented by Roger Pontare with the song "When Spirits Are Calling My Name".
Petra Maria Mede is a Swedish comedian, dancer, actress and television presenter. Mede is known for her several roles in comic shows and as a television presenter, and is best known outside of Sweden for hosting the Eurovision Song Contest in 2013, 2016 and 2024, as well as co-hosting Eurovision Song Contest's Greatest Hits in 2015.
Eesti Laul is an annual music competition organised by Estonian public broadcaster Eesti Rahvusringhääling (ERR). It determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Song Contest, and has been staged every year since 2009. Eesti Laul was introduced in 2009, replacing the former Eurolaul festival which had been used since Estonia's first Eurovision participation in 1993. It is one of the most popular television programmes in Estonia; it is also broadcast on radio and the Internet. In 2012, the semi-finals averaged 199,000 viewers, and over an estimated 296,000 viewers watched the final.
The Eurovision Song Contest Previews are annually broadcast TV shows showcasing the entries into the forthcoming Eurovision Song Contest. They were inaugurated in 1971 for the contest in Dublin, Ireland, and have been provided by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to all participating countries ever since.
Kristin "Krista" Siegfrids is a Finnish singer and television presenter. She represented Finland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 with her entry "Marry Me". Siegfrids' debut album, named Ding Dong!, was released in May 2013. As a television presenter, she hosted Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu from 2016 to 2020.
Sweden participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "If I Were Sorry" written by Oscar Fogelström, Michael Saxell, Fredrik Andersson and Frans Jeppsson Wall. The song was performed by Frans. In addition to participating in the contest, the Swedish broadcaster Sveriges Television (SVT) also hosted the Eurovision Song Contest after winning the competition in 2015 with the song "Heroes" performed by Måns Zelmerlöw. SVT organised the national final Melodifestivalen 2016 in order to select the Swedish entry for the 2016 contest in Stockholm. After a six-week-long competition consisting of four heats, a Second Chance round and a final, "If I Were Sorry" performed by Frans emerged as the winner after achieving the highest score following the combination of votes from eleven international jury groups and a public vote.
Farah Abadi is a Swedish television and radio presenter who works for Sveriges Television (SVT) and Sveriges Radio (SR).
Melodifestivalen 2018 was the 58th edition of the Swedish music competition Melodifestivalen, which selected Sweden's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2018. The competition was organised by Sveriges Television (SVT) and took place over a six-week period between 3 February and 10 March 2018.
Sveriges 12:a was a one-off music competition in the Eurovision format, organised and broadcast by the Swedish broadcaster Sveriges Television (SVT). It served as an alternative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, which was planned to be held in Rotterdam, Netherlands, but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Melodifestivalen 2021 was the 61st edition of the Swedish music competition Melodifestivalen. The competition was organised by Sveriges Television (SVT) and took place over a six-week period between 6 February and 13 March 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all shows of this edition took place in the Annexet in Stockholm, and without an audience. The winner of the competition was Tusse with the song "Voices", who represented Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 in Rotterdam, Netherlands, where he came fourteenth with 109 points.
