As every year, Swedish media report on artists set to compete in Melodifestivalen, the Swedish national Eurovision selection, with a high rate of accuracy. Who is expected in 2026?

Melodifestivalen, Sweden’s national broadcaster’s Eurovision selection, is the biggest and most popular pre-selection, viewed by countless Eurovision fans. The official contestant list for Melodifestivalen 2026 has not yet been published, but rumors and reports about the participants are already circulating. The newspaper “Expressen” reports on the first three artists likely to take part in the competition.

Normally, Sweden’s “Aftonbladet” publishes a list of artists expected to compete in the national selection. While not an official report from the national broadcaster SVT, the outlet is well known for its highly accurate predictions, often confirmed by the final list. For example, ahead of Melodifestivalen 2024, “Aftonbladet” predicted 29 names and missed only one. This time, “Expressen” is first to report—will it get the details right as well? Here are the first names it has revealed.

Fröken Snusk

Fröken Snusk (“Miss Dirty”) is known for her anonymous persona masked by a pink face covering. Her songs are noted for the Epadunk style, which blends electronic music with humorous rock—a genre enjoying significant success in Sweden in recent years. She frequently collaborates with singer-songwriter Rasmus Gozzi, who usually writes her songs. She broke out in September 2022 with the hit “Ride mig som en dalahäst,” which earned over 20 million streams on Spotify. She also competed at Melodifestivalen 2024 with “Unga & Fria,” a song that failed to reach the final but became a nationwide hit. This time, she is supposed to compete under her real identity and name – Felicia.

Greczula

Kristofer Niklas Greczula, known on stage simply as Greczula, is an acclaimed Swedish singer who finished third in Melodifestivalen 2025 with “Believe Me.” As a teenager, he founded the youth band Damn Delicious with classmates and later joined the rock group The Felix until 2015. In 2017, he started releasing solo music, dropping his debut album “Live and Let Live” in 2022—the same year he participated in Sweden’s popular summer show Allsång på Skansen. In 2024, he adopted Greczula as his permanent stage name.

Manoel “Junior” Lerin

Manoel “Junior” Marques Lerin, born in Brazil, is poised to make his Melodifestivalen debut in 2026. A well-known photographer and TV personality in Sweden, Junior recently appeared on the Swedish version of “Dancing with the Stars” broadcast on TV4. He is married to painter and author Lars Lerin and has participated extensively in his husband’s TV and book projects.

SVT Aims For Another Successful Melodifestivalen Edition

According to respected Swedish news site Aftonbladet, Dirawi and Nessvold will jointly present the upcoming Melodifestivalen. The duo is described as a wise choice aiming to replicate last year’s success. Nessvold began his career in 2016 on Swedish radio and quickly expanded into literature, music, television, and stage.

Rumors about the hosts have been circulating since August. One Aftonbladet source said, “The names came up in spring, and everything was likely finalized in summer.” Another added about Nessvold, “He is also a talented singer, so he can definitely perform entertainment bits and sketches—the hallmark of Melodifestivalen. Gina also enjoys doing this.”

Melodifestivalen project manager Anders Wistbacka, responded:
“Once the matter of the Melodifestivalen 2026 hosts is officially finalized, we will provide an update.”

Excitement around Melodifestivalen 2026 has already begun, with a record-breaking 3,888 songs submitted to the festival. The previous edition, hosted by Edvin Törnblom and Keyyo, won the “Crystal” award and received widespread praise from critics, who described Melodifestivalen 2025 as “the best since 2016.” SVT now appears hopeful for another successful year ahead.

Sensitive Choice Amid Debate

While there is excitement about Dirawi’s return, some consider the choice sensitive due to the current boycott discussions surrounding Israel’s potential participation. This sensitivity stems from Dirawi’s Palestinian-Lebanese background as well as her past strong statements against Israel, including a direct comparison between Israeli actions and the Holocaust—a comparison she later apologized for. Others highlight her professionalism and popularity, reinforcing that her return promises high-quality entertainment.

Dates and Locations For Melodifestivalen 2026

The first heat will be staged in Linköping, in southern Sweden, the capital of the Östergötland County. The second heat will be held in Göteborg, Sweden’s second-largest city, which also hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in 1985. Göteborg is the largest city in western Sweden and the fifth-largest in Scandinavia.

The third heat will be held in Kristianstad, located on the opposite side of the Skåne region, which will be hosting three consecutive shows. The fourth heat will take place in Malmö, Sweden’s third-largest city, well remembered for hosting the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest. Previously, Malmö also hosted Eurovision in 1992 and 2013.

The fifth heat is set for Sundsvall, a coastal city in central Sweden. As tradition dictates, the grand final will once again take place at Friends Arena in Stockholm. The Swedish capital has previously hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in 1975, 2000, and 2016.

The heats will be held across Sweden over six weeks:

First heat: Saturday, January 31st, in Linköping.
Second heat: Saturday, February 7th, in Göteborg.
Third heat: Saturday, February 14th, in Kristianstad.
Fourth heat: Saturday, February 21st, in Malmö.
Fifth heat and “Second Chance Round”: Saturday, February 28th, in Sundsvall.
Grand Final: Saturday, March 7th, at Friends Arena, Stockholm.

Format and Expected Changes for Melodifestivalen 2026

Melodifestivalen 2026 will once again run for six weeks, featuring five heats and one big final. Each heat will be hosted in a different city across the country, while the grand final will, as tradition dictates, take place at Friends Arena in Stockholm. From each heat, the two top-ranked songs will advance to the final, which will feature 12 songs. The winner will be determined by a 50/50 combination of jury votes and public televoting. The Melodifestivalen winner will then represent Sweden at Eurovision 2026 in Vienna, Austria.

SVT confirmed that the format changes introduced two years ago will remain in 2026, following overwhelmingly positive feedback from viewers. These include:

A “Second Chance” round: This gives participants who placed third or fourth in the semi-finals another opportunity to reach the final. Introduced in 2024, the system was praised as fair and exciting, giving popular songs another shot at the big stage.
Early song releases: Instead of waiting until the end of the semi-finals, all songs in each semi-final will be released on streaming platforms one day in advance. This allows fans to enjoy the music early, form opinions, and engage with the entries ahead of the live shows.

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.

The song led the betting predictions throughout the competition, reaching a peak of 49% winning probability, but ultimately finished in fourth place with 321 points – 126 points from the juries, ranked sixth, and 195 more points from the public, ranked third.

Eurovision 2026: This will be Sweden’s 65th 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”.