The Netherlands has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 64 times since making its debut as one of the seven countries at the first contest in 1956. The country has missed only four contests, twice because the dates coincided with Remembrance of the Dead, and twice because of being relegated due to poor results the previous year. It has missed the final despite qualifying once, in 2024, due to the personal conduct of its entrant which led to disqualification. The current Dutch participant broadcaster in the contest is AVROTROS. The Netherlands has hosted the contest five times: in Hilversum (1958), Amsterdam (1970), The Hague, and Rotterdam (2021).
The Netherlands was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 with the song "Amambanda", written by Caroline Hoffman, Niña van Dijk, and Djem van Dijk, and performed by themselves under their stage name Treble. The Dutch participating broadcaster, Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS), organised the national final Nationaal Songfestival 2006 in order to select its entry for the contest. Three artists competed in the national final on 12 March 2006 where the winner was selected over two rounds of voting. In the first round, each of the artists performed three songs and a nine-member jury panel selected one song per act to qualify to the second round. In the second round, "Amambanda" performed by Treble was selected as the winner exclusively by a public vote.
The Netherlands was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 with the song "My Impossible Dream", composed by Robert D. Fisher, with lyrics by Bruce Smith, and performed by Glennis Grace. The Dutch participating broadcaster, Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS), organised the national final Nationaal Songfestival 2005 in order to select its entry for the contest. 24 entries competed in the national final which consisted of five shows: four semi-finals and a final. Six entries competed in each semi-final with three advancing: two entries selected based on a public vote and one entry selected by a three-member jury panel. Twelve entries qualified from to compete in the final on 13 February 2005 where "My Impossible Dream" performed by Glennis Grace was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from three jury panels and a public vote.
The Netherlands was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "Without You", composed by Ed van Otterdijk, with lyrics by Angeline van Otterdijk, and performed by the duo Re-union. The Dutch participating broadcaster, Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS), organised the national final Nationaal Songfestival 2004 in order to select its entry for the contest. 24 entries competed in the national final which consisted of six shows: four semi-finals, a wildcard round and a final. Ten entries qualified from to compete in the final on 22 February 2004 where "Without You" performed by Re-union was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from a five-member jury panel and a public vote.
The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 with the song "On Top of the World" written by Tjeerd Oosterhuis, Martin Gijzemijter and Maarten ten Hove. The song was performed by Edsilia Rombley, who was internally selected by the Dutch broadcaster Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) to represent the Netherlands at the 2007 contest in Helsinki, Finland after previously representing the country in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1998 where she placed third with the song "Hemel en aarde". Edsilia Rombley's appointment as the Dutch representative was announced on 16 December 2006. Three potential songs were presented to the public on 11 February 2007 during the special programme Mooi! Weer het Nationaal Songfestival where the selected song "Nooit meer zonder jou" was announced. The song was later translated from Dutch to English for the Eurovision Song Contest and was titled "On Top of the World".
Glenda Hulita Elisabeth Batta, known professionally as Glennis Grace, is a Dutch singer. In 2005, she represented the Netherlands in the 50th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, and in 2018 she appeared on the 13th season of America's Got Talent and made it to the finals. Glennis Grace has received online attention due to the similarity between her voice and that of Whitney Houston.
The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 with the song "Your Heart Belongs to Me" written by Hind Laroussi Tahiri, Tjeerd van Zanen and Bas van den Heuvel. The song was performed by Hind, which is the artistic name of singer Hind Laroussi Tahiri who was internally selected by the Dutch broadcaster Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) to represent the Netherlands at the 2008 contest in Belgrade, Serbia. Hind's appointment as the Dutch representative was announced on 23 November 2007, while the song, "Your Heart Belongs to Me", was presented to the public on 7 March 2008 during the Nederland 3 programme Thank God it's Friday.
The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 with the song "Ik ben verliefd (Sha-la-lie)" written by Pierre Kartner. The song was performed by Sieneke. The Dutch broadcaster Televisie Radio Omroep Stichting (TROS) internally selected the song for the 2010 contest in Oslo, Norway. "Ik ben verliefd (Sha-la-lie)" was presented to the public on 18 December 2009, while the national final Nationaal Songfestival 2010 was organised in order to select the Dutch representative. Five artists competed in the national final on 7 February 2010 where Sieneke was selected by Pierre Kartner as the winner following a tie between two of the artists based on the combination of votes from a four-member jury panel and an audience vote.
The Netherlands was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2001 with the song "Out on My Own", written by Dirk-Jan Vermeij and André Remkes, and performed by Michelle. The Dutch participating broadcaster, Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS), selected its entry for the contest through Nationaal Songfestival 2001. Six entries competed in the national final on 3 March 2001 where "Out on My Own" performed by Michelle was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from three jury panels and a public vote.
The Netherlands was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 with the song "One More Night", written by Tjeerd van Zanen and Alan Michael, and performed by Esther Hart. The Dutch participating broadcaster, Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS), selected its entry for the contest through Nationaal Songfestival 2003. The broadcaster returned to the contest after a one-year absence following its relegation in 2002 as one of the bottom six entrants in 2001. 32 entries competed in the national final which consisted of five shows: four semi-finals and a final. Eight entries qualified from to compete in the final on 1 March 2003 where "One More Night" performed by Esther Hart was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from a seven-member jury panel and a public vote.
The Netherlands was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1996 with the song "De eerste keer", written by Piet Souer and Peter van Asten, and performed by Maxine and Franklin Brown. The Dutch participating broadcaster, Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS), selected its entry for the contest through Nationaal Songfestival 1996. NOS returned to the contest after a one-year absence following their relegation in 1995 as one of the bottom six entrants in 1994.
The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 with the song "Never Alone" written by Jan Dulles, Jaap Kwakman and Jaap de Witte. The song was performed by the band 3JS, which was internally selected by the Dutch broadcaster Televisie Radio Omroep Stichting (TROS) to represent the Netherlands at the 2011 contest in Düsseldorf, Germany. 3JS' appointment as the Dutch representative was announced on 15 July 2010, while the national final Nationaal Songfestival 2011 was organised in order to select the song. Five songs competed in the national final on 30 January 2011 where "Je vecht nooit alleen" was selected as the winning song following the combination of votes from a five-member jury panel and a public vote. The song was later translated from Dutch to English for the Eurovision Song Contest and was titled "Never Alone".
Nationaal Songfestival was an annual music competition, which was originally organised by the Dutch public broadcaster Nederlandse Televisie Stichting (NTS), and later by the Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) and the Televisie Radio Omroep Stichting (TROS). It was staged almost every year between 1956 and 2012 to determine the country's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest. The festival has produced four Eurovision winners and eight top-five placings for the Netherlands at the contest.
The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 with the song "You and Me" written by Joan Franka and Jessica Hogeboom. The song was performed by Joan Franka. The Dutch broadcaster Televisie Radio Omroep Stichting (TROS) organised the national final Nationaal Songfestival 2012 in order to select the Dutch entry for the 2012 contest in Baku, Azerbaijan. Six entries competed in the national final on 26 February 2012 where the winner was selected over two rounds of voting. The first round consisted of three duels and the winner of each duel qualified to the second round. In the second round, "You and Me" performed by Joan Franka was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from a five-member jury panel and a public vote.
Joany Franka Johanna Ayten Hazebroek Kalan, known professionally as Joan Franka, is a Dutch singer and songwriter of Turkish descent. She represented the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 with the song "You and Me". She became known in the Netherlands through her participation in the first season of The Voice of Holland.
The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Walk Along" written by Tobias Karlsson and Anouk Teeuwe. The song was performed by Trijntje Oosterhuis, who was internally selected by the Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS to represent the Netherlands at the 2015 contest in Vienna, Austria. Songwriter Anouk Teeuwe represented the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 with the song "Birds" where she placed ninth in the grand final of the competition. Trijntje Oosterhuis' appointment as the Dutch representative was announced on 10 November 2014, while the song, "Walk Along", was presented to the public on 11 December 2014.
The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "Slow Down" written by Douwe Bob, Jan Peter Hoekstra, Jeroen Overman and Matthijs van Duijvenbode. The song was performed by Douwe Bob, who was internally selected by the Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS to represent the Netherlands at the 2016 contest in Stockholm, Sweden. Douwe Bob's appointment as the Dutch representative was announced on 22 September 2015, while the song, "Slow Down", was presented to the public on 4 March 2016.
Junior Songfestival is a Dutch televised music competition for children, held annually since 2003. It is the children's version of the Nationaal Songfestival. The winner of the contest goes on to represent the Netherlands in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest, an international version of the competition.
The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy, with "De diepte" performed by S10. The Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS internally selected the Dutch entry for the 2022 contest. S10's appointment as the Dutch representative was announced on 7 December 2021, while the song, "De diepte", was presented to the public during an event on 3 March 2022.
Belgium was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 with the song "Because of You", written by Stef Caers and Jaouad Alloul, and performed by Caers himself under his stage name Gustaph. The Belgian participating broadcaster, Flemish Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT), organised the national final Eurosong 2023 to select the Belgian entry for the contest. The competition featured seven competing acts and consisted of five songclub shows and a final. In the final on 14 January 2023, "Because of You" performed by Gustaph was selected as the winner via the votes of a fifteen-member jury panel and a public vote.
