Italy’s national broadcaster RAI announced today that the contestants of Festival Di Sanremo 2026, will be revealed on December 7th by artistic director and host Carlo Conti.
Italy’s national broadcaster RAI announced today that the list of participants in the 76th edition of the Italian Eurovision pre-selection, Sanremo Festival 2026, will be revealed on December 7th by the festival’s artistic director and host, Carlo Conti. The festival will take place between February 24th–28th, featuring 24 artists. The winner will earn the opportunity to represent Italy at Eurovision 2026. Should the winner refuse, the national broadcaster will select another contestant from Sanremo’s lineup to represent the country.
Although the official lineup for Sanremo has not yet been released, recent leaks suggest that several past representatives of Italy may return. According to reports in the Italian music industry, the most frequently mentioned names are:
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Angelina Mango – winner of Sanremo 2024, who represented Italy at Eurovision 2024 with the song “La noia” (in English: “The Boredom”), finishing in 7th place.
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Tiziano Ferro – one of Italy’s biggest pop stars in recent decades. He has never competed at Sanremo before, but his international popularity makes him a strong candidate for securing Italy another Eurovision victory.
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Tommaso Paradiso – former frontman of the band Thegiornalisti, known for numerous Italian pop hits. Though he has never competed for Eurovision, he is regarded as an artist who could connect with the wider European audience.
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Matteo Bocelli – son of the renowned tenor Andrea Bocelli. Having already performed on many international stages, his family legacy and distinctive voice could attract significant attention at Eurovision.
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California dei Coma_Cose – half of the Italian duo Coma_Cose, who has previously taken part in Sanremo. Reports suggest he plans to launch a solo career on the Ariston stage, possibly leading to Eurovision.
Furthermore, reports indicate that Carlo Conti is determined to bring back Blanco – who, alongside Alessandro Mahmood, represented Italy at Eurovision 2022 with the hit “Brividi” (in English: “Shivers”).
Dates and Format of Festival Di Sanremo 2026
Like every year, the festival will span five nights, structured as follows:
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First Night (Tuesday, February 24th, 2026):
24 artists will perform their competing songs. A jury composed of professional journalists from television and online media will vote. RAI will then announce, in random order, the top five entries receiving the highest scores. -
Second Night (Wednesday, February 25th, 2026):
12 artists will perform. Voting will be split between the public (50%) and a radio jury (50%). The top five will be announced randomly. -
Third Night (Thursday, February 26th, 2026):
The remaining 12 artists will perform. Voting will again be divided between the public (50%) and the radio jury (50%). The top five will be announced randomly. -
Fourth Night (Friday, February 27th, 2026):
Contestants will perform cover versions of existing songs in Italian, English, or other languages. They may collaborate with guest performers. Voting will be divided between the public (34%), a professional jury of journalists (33%), and a radio jury (33%). Results from this night will not count toward the overall competition. -
Fifth Night (Saturday, February 28th, 2026):
All 24 artists will perform again with their competing songs. The public vote will be added to the cumulative scores from previous nights to determine the five superfinalists. These five will then perform again, with the winner chosen based on votes from the public (34%), the journalists’ jury (33%) and the radio jury (33%). The performance with the highest score will be declared the winner of Sanremo 2026.
In addition to the main competition, the festival will feature the “Nuove Proposte” category for young artists. On the second and third nights, four emerging performers will showcase their songs. One artist from each night will advance to the final, where, on the fourth night, the winner will be chosen through a mixed vote of the public (34%), journalists (33%), and the radio jury (33%).
Italy at Eurovision 2025
“Volevo essere un duro” (in English: “I Wanted to Be Tough”) is the song performed by singer Lucio Corsi, which came second at the 75th edition of the Sanremo Festival. The song was written by the singer himself along with Tommaso Ottomano. This was the singer’s first-ever appearance at the festival. The song is performed in Italian. The song finished fifth in the grand final with 256 points.
Italy returns to the Eurovision Grand Final Top 5 after last year achieving “only” seventh place.
Eurovision 2026: This will be Italy’s 51st participation in Eurovision. Italy joined the contest in 1956, was one of the seven founding countries, and has won three times over the years. Italy’s most recent victory was at Eurovision 2021 with the song “Zitti e buoni” performed by the band Måneskin.
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Ilay Gaist is a leading Israeli content creator and writer specializing in the Eurovision Song Contest. He is a well-known commentator with extensive expertise in the contest’s history, rules, and dynamics. His passion for Eurovision drives him to deliver rich, professional, and innovative content to his audience.
Ilay holds a bachelor’s degree in Arabic and has a multilingual background. He also engages in cultural research, with a particular focus on global culinary traditions and the evolution of local cuisines around the world.
