Finland’s national broadcaster YLE reveals that 491 songs have been submitted for “UMK 2026”. Hints about participants were published, with the full list to be revealed on January 14th.
Finland’s national broadcaster YLE reveals new details about UMK 2026. The broadcaster announced that the competition will take place on February 28th, 2025, at the Nokia Arena in Tampere, Finland’s third-largest city. It was also disclosed that a record 491 songs were submitted this year, six more than last year, marking the highest number since the selection adopted its current format in 2020.
Finland’s Songs Submissions Reach a Record High
In recent years, Finland’s national broadcaster has reported a consistent rise in submissions for UMK:
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UMK 2026 – 491 songs
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UMK 2025 – 485 songs
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UMK 2024 – 419 songs
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UMK 2023 – 363 songs
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UMK 2022 – 312 songs
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UMK 2021 – 278 songs
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UMK 2020 – 426 songs
The broadcaster also confirmed details regarding the reveal process: the participating artists will be presented in a TV show on Wednesday, January 14th, while the seven competing songs will be unveiled one by one between January 15th and January 23rd. Tapio Hakanen, head of the UMK jury, revealed intriguing hints about the lineup:
“The artists taking part in this year’s selection will include a charismatic debut performer, a representative of the most modern sound, a talented and internationally popular artist, a performer with a truly unique genre, a duo with distinct voices, a particularly dramatic pop song with powerful vocals, and a heartfelt ballad radiating international charm”.
The chief producer of UMK, Anssi Autio, responded to the new announcements with excitement:
“The UMK show, which for the third time will take place on the spectacular Nokia Arena stage, is one of the most esteemed selections in the Eurovision world. Its production quality and stunning visuals have drawn attention from countries worldwide”.
In recent years, Finland’s national selection has indeed achieved impressive success among Eurovision fans across Europe. After a decade marked by setbacks, the current era is proving highly successful for Finland: this year the country qualified for the final for the fifth consecutive time – a feat not managed since the late 2000s. Additionally, just two years ago Finland celebrated one of its greatest achievements when Käärijä finished second in the Eurovision final, winning the public vote by a wide margin.
Finland at Eurovision 2025
“Ich Komme” (in English: “I Am Coming”) is the song performed by Erika Vikman, who represented Finland in the Eurovision 2025 Grand Final. Finland qualified for the Grand Final after placing third in the second semi-final with 115 points. In the Grand Final, Finland finished 11th with a total of 196 points, placing ninth in the public vote with 108 points and tenth in the jury vote with 88 points.
Eurovision 2026: This will be Finland’s 59th participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. Finland joined the competition in 1961 and achieved its best result in Eurovision 2006, winning the contest with Lordi and their song “Hard Rock Hallelujah”.
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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.
