Belgium has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 64 times since making its debut as one of seven countries at the first contest in 1956. The only countries with the same number or more appearances are Germany (66), France (65) and the United Kingdom (65). Belgium have been absent only three times in total, in 1994, 1997 and 2001, due to low scores in the previous contests that relegated them from the contest. Belgium has won the contest once, in 1986.
The Radio-télévision belge de la Communauté française, shortened to RTBF, is a public service broadcaster delivering radio and television services to the French-speaking Community of Belgium, in Wallonia and Brussels. Its counterpart in the Flemish Community is the Dutch-language VRT, and in the German-speaking Community it is BRF.
The VRT is the national public-service broadcaster for the Flemish Community of Belgium.
VRT 1 is a public Dutch-language TV station in Belgium, owned by the VRT, which also owns Ketnet, VRT Canvas and several radio stations. Although the channel is commercial-free, short sponsorship messages are broadcast in between some programmes.
Gradski vrt Stadium is a multi-use stadium in Osijek, Croatia. It is located in the Gradski vrt neighbourhood in Novi grad city district. With a capacity of 17,061, it has been the home ground of two Croatian football clubs, NK Osijek and Fortuna VNO Osijek.
Channel 2 or TV 2 may refer to:
Belgium competed in every Junior Eurovision Song Contest before withdrawing in 2013. The country's best result was in 2009, when Laura Omloop came 4th with "Zo verliefd". Belgium's worst result was in 2007, with Trust coming 15th with "Anders".
VRT Canvas is a Belgian television channel of the Flemish public broadcasting organisation Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT). Specialising in both original and adaptations from western Europe and North America, the channel offers: in-depth news and current affairs, non-mainstream entertainment, documentaries, arthouse films, other cultural programming, and most recently additional children's programming.
Ljudski vrt is a football stadium in Maribor, the second-largest city of Slovenia. The stadium has a seating capacity of 11,709. It has been the home of NK Maribor since their formation in 1960, with the exception of a short period in early 1961. The stadium was originally the home of several other football teams based in Maribor, including Rapid and Branik. A prominent feature of the stadium is the main grandstand with a concrete arch, which is protected by the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia as an architectural and historical landmark.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "1 Life" written by Dirk Paelinck and Marc Paelinck. The song was performed by Xandee. The Belgian entry for the 2004 contest in Istanbul, Turkey was selected through the national final Eurosong '04, organised by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT). The competition featured twenty-eight competing entries and consisted of five shows. In the final on 15 February 2004, "1 Life" performed by Xandee was selected as the winner via the votes of five voting groups.
Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium. Ultratop is a non-profit organization, created in 1995 on the initiative of the Belgian Entertainment Association (BEA), the Belgian member organization of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Two parallel sets of charts are concurrently produced and published, one on behalf of Belgium's mainly Dutch-speaking Flanders region, and the other catering to the nation's mainly French-speaking region of Wallonia.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 with the song "Love Power" written by Paul Curtiz and Wakas Ashiq. The song was performed by the band The KMG's, which was internally selected by the Walloon broadcaster Radio Télévision Belge de la Communauté Française (RTBF) in February 2007 to represent the nation at the 2007 contest in Helsinki, Finland. The song, "Love Power", was released on 23 February 2007 and officially presented to the public on 26 February 2007. This was the first time that a Walloon entry was performed in English at the Eurovision Song Contest.
Television in Belgium was introduced in 1953 and began with one channel each in Dutch and French. The country is heavily cabled, with 93% of households watching television through cable as of 2003.
Radio2 is a Belgian radio channel operated by the Flemish public broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep (VRT).
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 with the song "Would You?" written by Nina Sampermans, Jean Bosco Safari and Walter Mannaerts. The song was performed by Iris, who was internally selected by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT) in November 2011 to represent the nation at the 2012 contest in Baku, Azerbaijan. The song was selected through the national final Eurosong 2012: Een song voor Iris, which was organised by VRT and featured two songs. In the final on 17 March 2012, "Would You?" was selected as the winning song after gaining 53% of the public televote.
High-speed rail in the Czech Republic is being planned with construction starting in 2026 and maximum speed between 200 and 320 km/h. Although České Dráhy owns and operates multiple rolling stock capable of speeds of 230 km/h (143 mph) since 2004, there is, as of 2023, no infrastructure capable of velocity over 200 km/h (124 mph). The only exception is the 13.3-kilometre long track at Velim railway test circuit with a maximum allowed speed of 230 km/h (143 mph) for tilting trains and up to 210 km/h (130 mph) for conventional trains. Czech rolling stock manufacturer Škoda Transportation has produced high-speed rolling stock since the 1970s.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 with the song "A Matter of Time" written by Laura Groeseneken, Alex Callier and Maxime Tribeche. The song was performed by Sennek, which is the artistic name of singer Laura Groeseneken who was internally selected by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT) in September 2017 to represent the nation at the 2018 contest in Lisbon, Portugal. The song, "A Matter of Time", was presented to the public on 5 March 2018.
Belgium originally planned to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 with the song "Release Me" written by Alex Callier and Luca Chiaravalli. The song was performed by the band Hooverphonic, which was internally selected by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT) in October 2019 to represent the nation at the 2020 contest in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The song, "Release Me", was presented to the public on 17 February 2020.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 with the song "The Wrong Place" written by Alex Callier and Charlotte Foret. The song was performed by the band Hooverphonic, which was internally selected by the Belgian broadcasters Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT) and Radio Télévision Belge de la Communauté Française (RTBF) in March 2020 to represent the nation at the 2021 contest in Rotterdam, Netherlands, after they were due to compete in the 2020 contest with "Release Me" before the 2020 event's cancellation. The song, "The Wrong Place", was presented to the public on 4 March 2021.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 in Liverpool, United Kingdom, with the song "Because of You" performed by Gustaph. The Belgian entry for the 2023 contest was selected through the national final Eurosong 2023, organised by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT). 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.
