Swedish national broadcaster SVT has confirmed Sweden’s participation in Eurovision 2026, set to take place in Austria. The country will once again select its representative through Melodifestivalen.
The Swedish national broadcaster SVT has officially announced that Sweden will take part in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026, which will be hosted in Austria. Sweden becomes the 18th country to express interest in joining Eurovision 2026, following Albania, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Serbia, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the host country, Austria.
SVT confirmed its participation in Eurovision 2026 in Austria to the Eurovision news site ESC Today.
As in previous years, Melodifestivalen will once again serve as Sweden’s national selection event for Eurovision. This marks the 63rd time that the Swedish entry will be chosen via this platform, which has selected every Swedish Eurovision representative except for the country’s debut in 1958, when singer Alice Babs was selected internally, and except for Sweden’s absences from the contest in 1964, 1970, and 1976. Further details regarding Melodifestivalen 2026 will be revealed in due course.
Sweden’s Eurovision Legacy
Sweden is widely regarded as a Eurovision powerhouse. Across its 63 appearances, the country has claimed victory seven times and shares the record for most wins with Ireland. Notably, both countries have produced the only two artists to win Eurovision twice: the first was Johnny Logan from Ireland, who triumphed in 1980 and 1987. The second was Loreen from Sweden, who won in 2012 and again in 2023.
Sweden’s impressive track record includes finishing in the top five a remarkable 28 times – securing first place seven times, second place once, third place six times, fourth place four times, and fifth place ten times. Sweden has also placed between sixth and tenth an additional 17 times.
An official and final list of participating countries for Eurovision 2026 is expected to be published in October.
Sweden at Eurovision 2025:
“Bara bada bastu” (in English: “Just take a sauna”) is the title of the song which was performed by band KAJ, who represented Sweden in Eurovision 2025, in Basel, Switzerland – Placing 4th with 321 points. The song was written by the band members – Kevin Holmström, Axel Åhman, and Jakob Norrgård – along with Anderz Wrethov, Kristoffer Strandberg, and Robert Skowronski.
Wrethov is no stranger to the Eurovision world, having written numerous Eurovision songs, including “We Will Rave” by Kaleen, who represented Austria in Eurovision 2024, “Fuego” by Eleni Foureira, who represented Cyprus in Eurovision 2018 and finished in second place, and “Voices” by Tusse, Sweden’s representative in Eurovision 2021. The song is performed in Finnish and Swedish.
Eurovision 2026: This will be Sweden’s 64th appearance in the competition. Sweden joined Eurovision in 1958 and has won the contest seven times over the years. The country’s most recent victory came in 2023, when Loreen won with the song “Tattoo”.
