RTSH confirmed over 100 entries for Festivali i Këngës 64, which will again choose the country’s Eurovision 2026 act in Vienna, Austria
More than 100 songs have been submitted to the 64th edition of Festivali i Këngës, which also serves as Albania’s national selection for Eurovision. The national broadcaster RTSH confirmed the significant increase compared with recent years: the festival received 84 songs last year, while the two years before that saw only 80. The relative success of Shkodra Elektronike, who achieved eighth place at Eurovision 2025 in Basel, has seemingly encouraged many creators to take part, restoring national interest in the event and in Eurovision itself.
Albania’s Eurovision 2026 participation had been in doubt due to major reported debts of the national broadcaster to the EBU. Only two weeks ago, it was confirmed that Albania’s participation was secured after RTSH successfully renegotiated its financial obligations with the EBU.
Festival producer Belioza Çoku revealed new details about the organization and upcoming innovations. All songs will be thoroughly reviewed by a professional committee that will reject AI-generated entries, aiming to protect the festival’s authenticity and long tradition. “The review will establish a protocol, carrying out all necessary checks to confirm that each work is original, appropriate, processed under quality standards, and presented at the proper level”.
Festival Format and Nostalgic Appeal
The festival will once again follow the traditional four-night structure, featuring three competitive evenings and one nostalgia show. “Soon you will also hear about initiatives ensuring both audience participation and early familiarity with the entries before the festival nights. The third evening will be a nostalgia show, as we noticed the Albanian audience deeply values this”.
The full list of participants is expected soon at a press conference, while the competing songs will be released in November.
History of the Festival
The Albanian festival has taken place annually since 1961. In 2003, the national broadcaster decided to use it as the country’s national selection for Eurovision. All competitors are required to perform in Albanian, though the winner may later perform in English at Eurovision. From Albania’s debut in 2004 until 2022, winners were chosen by a professional jury to represent the country internationally.
From 2023, the jury selected the festival winner while the audience decided Albania’s Eurovision act. However, in 2025, the broadcaster altered the rules once again, ensuring the festival winner would also represent Albania at Eurovision. The winner is now determined through a mixed voting system where the jury accounts for 60% of the score and the audience for 40%. According to regulations, all participants must hold Albanian citizenship.
Albania at Eurovision 2025
“Zjerm” (in English: “Fire”), performed by the duo Shkodra Elektronike, represented Albania at Eurovision 2025 in Basel, Switzerland. Albania qualified for the final from the first semi-final in second place with 122 points and finished eighth in the grand final with 218 points – 45 from the jury and 173 from the public.
Eurovision 2026: This will be Albania’s 22nd participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. Albania joined the competition in 2004 and achieved its best result in Eurovision 2012 when singer Rona Nishliu reached fifth place with the song “Suus”.
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Maor Heumann has been writing about the Eurovision Song Contest and following it for over three decades. He has attended five contests and has found something to appreciate in almost every possible musical genre — from the sugary pop entries that finish last in the semi-finals to the quirky avant-garde pieces that even the competition’s juries struggled to connect with. He usually prefers original languages and songs with depth over Swedish-produced English clones — though he doesn’t promise to stick to that rule.
He grew up on the kibbutz of Sara’le Sharon, who instilled in him a love for music and created his first connection to the contest back in 1993 — before most of the current editorial team was even born.
