After previously threatening to withdraw from Eurovision, the government of San Marino has now confirmed that the small state will take part in Eurovision 2026! San Marino will once again use the “San Marino Song Contest” as its national selection.

The Sammarinese State Congress has officially announced that San Marino will participate in Eurovision 2026, which will be hosted in Austria. San Marino becomes the 23rd country to express interest in joining Eurovision 2026, following Albania, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the host country, Austria.

At the previous Eurovision, San Marino finished last in the final with the song “Tutta L’italia” (“All Italy”), performed by Gabry Ponte. After the contest, the country voiced strong reservations about the current Eurovision voting system and, unlike other countries, also openly criticized the judges’ voting. Despite statements from the national broadcaster regarding uncertainty over participation, the government has now published a document demonstrating a different stance.

In an official document released by the Congress of State of San Marino (the government) on July 8, the government acknowledged Eurovision’s contribution to San Marino’s international visibility and tourism. The document also confirms an additional year of the San Marino selection show, allocating resources for the 2026 “San Marino Song Contest.”

It is important to recall that San Marino had previously expressed strong discontent with the Eurovision voting system. The CEO of the national broadcaster, Roberto Sergio, stated plainly: “The system doesn’t work—the public vote is not necessarily tied to the song itself. On the one hand, we get zeros; on the other, high scores are awarded for all sorts of strange reasons that have nothing to do with performance quality.” According to him, the issue is even more pronounced with the jury vote: “Even more worrisome is the lack of seriousness among the jury members. We don’t know who selected them, what their names are, or what musical qualifications they possess. They cast votes that are simply embarrassing.”

Despite harsh criticism, San Marino seems to have concluded that the contest’s advantages outweigh the drawbacks and has decided to align with the European Broadcasting Union and participate in Eurovision once again.