49 Fun Facts About Eurovision Song Contest

Which organisation has run the Eurovision Song Contest since 1956?

The European Broadcasting Union created the contest partly to test how far live television could be relayed across borders.

Eurovision was modelled on an Italian song competition held since 1951 in which town?

Eurovision was modelled on the Sanremo Music Festival, held in the Ligurian town of Sanremo since 1951; RAI manager Sergio Pugliese proposed a Europe-wide version.

In which Swiss city was the first Eurovision Song Contest held in 1956?

Lugano; Luxembourg's jurors could not get there, so Swiss nationals cast Luxembourg's votes, and Switzerland won.

Who won the very first Eurovision in 1956, singing 'Refrain' for the host country?

Lys Assia sang both of Switzerland's songs, and since the jury's scores were never published, nobody knows how her other one placed.

Which country competed at the first Eurovision in 1956?

Belgium; Denmark and Austria reportedly missed the entry deadline, so they made their debuts a year later.

Which two countries were tied on a record seven Eurovision wins each at the end of 2025?

Ireland and Sweden; Ireland's 1990s run was so strong that it hosted three contests in a row, in Millstreet in 1993 and Dublin in 1994 and 1995.

Which country has competed in Eurovision more times than any other, missing only one edition?

Germany has taken part in every contest except 1996, when it was eliminated in an audio pre-qualifying round; it has won twice, with Nicole in 1982 and Lena in 2010.

The fanfare played before Eurovision broadcasts is the prelude to which piece?

Charpentier's Te Deum; the piece had lain forgotten until its rediscovery in 1953, and a year later it became the Eurovision network's theme.

Which country was disqualified from Eurovision 2021 after its song was ruled too political?

Belarus; its replacement entry was also ruled ineligible, so the country was thrown out of the contest.

Which score does a country give its favourite song in each set of Eurovision votes?

12, the famous 'douze points'; since 2016 each country gives one set from its jury and one from its public, so a song can collect 24 from one country.

Which city was due to host Eurovision 2020 before COVID-19 cancelled the contest?

Rotterdam; the Dutch broadcasters kept the hosting rights, so the 2021 contest went ahead in the same Rotterdam arena.

Which five top funders go straight to Eurovision's final?

France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK; despite its guaranteed place, Spain boycotted the 2026 contest because Israel was allowed to take part.

Which singer won Eurovision 2016 for Ukraine with '1944', a song about Stalin's deportation of the Crimean Tatars?

Jamala based the song on her great-grandmother, who was among the Crimean Tatars forced onto crowded trains to Central Asia.

Which city hosted the first Eurovision to include a semi-final, in 2004?

Istanbul, after Sertab Erener's 2003 win for Turkey; the new semi-final made room for a then-record 36 countries.

Which city hosted the 1969 Eurovision, where four countries tied for first place?

Madrid, because Massiel's 'La, la, la' had won for Spain in 1968, and the tie meant Spain won again.

Which act shared first place when four countries tied at Eurovision 1969?

Lulu with 'Boom Bang-a-Bang'; there were not enough medals for four winning teams, so only the four singers received theirs on stage.

ABBA won Eurovision for Sweden in 1974 in which English seaside town?

Brighton; at that same contest Portugal's entry, 'E depois do adeus', went on to play a part in launching the Carnation Revolution.

Which singer won Eurovision 1988 for Switzerland, beating the UK's entry by a single point?

Céline Dion trailed until the last jury, Yugoslavia's, gave her six points and the UK's Scott Fitzgerald none.

Which future superstar came fourth for Spain in 1970?

Julio Iglesias took up singing after a 1963 car crash ended his days as a youth-team goalkeeper, and a nurse gave him a guitar.

Which song won Eurovision 1976 for the UK after being performed first on the night?

'Save Your Kisses for Me' sounds like a love song until its last line reveals the man is leaving his three-year-old daughter.

Which Eurovision entry won Record of the Year at the very first Grammy Awards?

'Volare', Domenico Modugno's 'Nel blu, dipinto di blu', lost Eurovision 1958 to France, yet won Record and Song of the Year at the first Grammys.

Who was the first performer to win Eurovision twice, in 1980 and 1987?

Johnny Logan won for Ireland with 'What's Another Year' in 1980 and 'Hold Me Now' in 1987, then wrote Linda Martin's 1992 winner 'Why Me?', giving him three wins in all.

With which two songs did Sweden's Loreen win Eurovision in 2012 and 2023?

'Euphoria' and 'Tattoo'; in 2023 Finland's Käärijä won the public vote, but Loreen won the jury vote, which carried 'Tattoo' to victory.

Which country had finished last a record 12 times by the end of Eurovision 2025?

Norway; Jahn Teigen received nul points for it in 1978, yet used the notoriety to become one of Norway's most successful artists.

Which UK singer finished second at Eurovision 2022 with 'Space Man'?

Sam Ryder won the jury vote before a huge public vote swept Ukraine ahead, and still gave the UK its best result since 1998.

Which Will Ferrell film follows two Icelandic singers chasing Eurovision glory?

Fire Saga; Ferrell got the idea in 1998, when his future wife, Viveca Paulin, introduced him to the contest.

Which Irish dance show began as the interval act at Eurovision 1994 in Dublin?

Riverdance; its star Michael Flatley split from the show in a 1995 dispute over creative control and went on to create Lord of the Dance.

Which country won Eurovision 2007 on its debut as an independent nation?

Serbia; Marija Šerifović's 'Molitva' won on that debut, so Belgrade hosted the contest the following year.

Which singer won Portugal's first Eurovision, in 2017, at the country's 49th attempt?

Salvador Sobral, who had a serious heart condition during the contest, received a heart transplant that December.

What record did Alexander Rybak's 'Fairytale' set when it won Eurovision 2009?

Highest winning score: 'Fairytale' took 387 points in Moscow, then the most in the contest's history, and brought the 2010 contest to Oslo.

Finland's first Eurovision win came in 2006 with 'Hard Rock Hallelujah' by which monster-masked rock band?

Lordi ended Finland's long wait for a win, which is why Helsinki hosted the 2007 contest.

Conchita Wurst won Eurovision for Austria in 2014, in Copenhagen, with which song?

Rise Like a Phoenix; Russian politicians criticised the bearded singer's win, and petitions had already sought to cut her from broadcasts.

Which song won Eurovision 1998 for Israel in Birmingham?

Diva; its singer's victory is credited with bringing trans identity into the mainstream.

Bucks Fizz's 1981 Eurovision routine is famous for what?

Men ripping off the women's outer skirts, timed to a lyric about wanting to see more, to reveal mini-skirts underneath.

Katrina and the Waves won Eurovision for the UK in 1997 with which song?

'Love Shine a Light' won in Dublin in 1997 with 227 points; it was written by the band's guitarist Kimberley Rew, who also wrote 'Walking on Sunshine'.

Who was the first UK entrant to win Eurovision, in 1967?

Sandie Shaw sang five songs on the BBC's selection show, and viewers' postcard votes picked 'Puppet on a String'.

Which Italian rock band won in 2021 with 'Zitti e buoni'?

Måneskin; when viewers accused the singer of taking cocaine on air, he denied it and volunteered for a drug test.

Duncan Laurence's 2019 winner 'Arcade' later became the first Eurovision winner since 1976 to do what?

Chart on the Billboard Hot 100; yet at Eurovision itself, 'Arcade' had won neither the jury vote nor the public vote.

The 2022 contest was won by 'Stefania', performed by which folk-hip-hop group?

Kalush Orchestra's frontman ended the performance pleading onstage for help for Mariupol and the Azovstal steelworks.

Which UK city hosted the 2023 contest on behalf of the previous year's winner?

Liverpool; the BBC staged the show there because Ukraine's broadcaster could not host during the war.

Switzerland's Nemo won Eurovision 2024 with 'The Code', a song about coming to terms with being what?

Non-binary; after reprising 'The Code', Nemo broke the trophy while celebrating the win.

Nemo's win took the 2025 contest to which Swiss city?

Basel; a local referendum approved the city's spending on the contest despite organised opposition.

Who won Eurovision 2025 for Austria with 'Wasted Love'?

JJ won on the juries' scores, although Israel's Yuval Raphael topped the public vote.

Which country was invited to Eurovision 2015 as a special guest for the contest's 60th anniversary?

Australia; the one-off invitation became a regular place, and Dami Im finished second the following year.

Which North African country entered Eurovision in 1980?

Morocco; its Arabic song finished second to last, and Moroccan TV decided not to take part again.

Who won Eurovision for Belgium in 1986 at the age of 13?

Sandra Kim stays the youngest winner because, after 11- and 12-year-olds sang in 1989, performers had to be at least 16.

Which fixture did Eurovision hosts no longer have to provide from 1999?

A live orchestra; from 1999 it became optional, and acts sang over recorded backing tracks instead.

What did Eurovision's 1999 rule change let every country choose freely?

Singing language; the first contest under the new rule was won by 'Take Me to Your Heaven', sung in English.

Which Irish winner of Eurovision 1970 later ran for president of Ireland and served as an MEP?

Dana got onto the 1997 presidential ballot without party backing, through nominations from county councils.