The Bulgarian national broadcaster BNT is preparing to reveal the list of contenders for the national final that will select Bulgaria’s representative for Eurovision 2026, in the coming two weeks.
According to Mila Hristova, head of Marketing and Strategic Development at BNT, the names of the artists participating in the Bulgarian national final are expected to be published next week or at the latest in the early days of the new calendar year.
Hristova noted that the broadcaster is in the final stage of preparations for the contest, and contracts with the artists who will participate in the national final are being signed at present.
A Star-Studded Selection with Leading Artists
The Bulgarian national selection will adopt a new format and will involve 15 of the country’s top artists, selected by BNT.
In the first night, on January 24th, each contestant will receive a score from five judges, ranging from 1 to 5, while the public will allocate 15 points to the first place, 14 to the second, 13 to the third, and so on, via the BNT website. The seven artists with the highest combined score (jury + public) will advance to the second and final stage. In the second stage, held a week later on January 31st, the seven qualified artists will perform again, singing one of their past hits.
They will be judged again by a five-member panel of judges and by the public. The five judges will again rate each artist from 1 to 5, while the public – via another online vote on the BNT site – will give 7 points to their favorite, 6 to the second, 5 to the third, and so forth. The artist with the highest overall score will represent Bulgaria at Eurovision 2026, in Vienna, Austria. In the event of a tie, the public’s vote will carry decisive weight.
On February 28th, Bulgaria’s song will be chosen. The artist selected in the previous stage will perform three songs, written by a writing team chosen by BNT. The public and the judges from the two previous performances will select the song – judges will award 3 points to their favorite song, 2 to the second, and 1 to the third, with the public applying the same scoring. In case of a tie, the public vote will prevail again.
Additionally, the broadcaster revealed new rules ahead of the competition. Under the rules, BNT must ensure that candidates have no past or public activities that contradict the EBU values or could damage the competition’s reputation. The broadcaster’s checks include: disqualification of those who publicly opposed the competition, disqualification of candidates who might use their participation for non-competitive purposes, and obligating artists to adhere to the EBU Code of Conduct.
Bulgaria’s Eurovision Journey
Bulgaria joined the Eurovision Song Contest in 2005 and has competed 14 times since. Its debut entry, performed by the band Kaffe with the song “Lorraine”, finished 19th in the semifinal and did not qualify for the final.
The country achieved its first-ever qualification for the final in Eurovision 2007 in Helsinki, Finland, when Elitsa Todorova and Stoyan Yankoulov reached 5th place with their energetic entry “Water”. The duo later returned to the contest in Malmö, Sweden, in Eurovision 2013 with “Samo Shampioni” (in English: “Only Champions”), finishing 12th in the second semifinal and failing to qualify. Between 2008 and 2013, Bulgaria did not reach any finals.
Since joining Eurovision, Bulgaria has missed six editions of the contest. The country first withdrew in 2014 (Copenhagen, Denmark) due to financial reasons, and its absence continued in 2015 (Vienna, Austria).
In 2016, Bulgaria made a powerful comeback when Poli Genova, representing the nation for the second time, performed “If Love Was A Crime” in Stockholm, Sweden. She broke Bulgaria’s previous record, finishing in 4th place. This success came after failing to qualify for the Eurovision 2011 final in Düsseldorf, Germany, with her song “Na Inat” (in English: “Stubborn”), which placed 12th in its semifinal.
A year later, Kristian Kostov represented Bulgaria with “Beautiful Mess”, achieving the country’s best-ever result by finishing second, setting a new national record.
Bulgaria at Eurovision 2022
For Eurovision 2022, Bulgaria sent Intelligent Music Project with their song “Intention”, which interrupted Bulgaria’s streak of successes as they failed to qualify for the final for the first time since Eurovision 2013. The band finished sixteenth out of seventeen countries in the first semi-final held in Turin, Italy, receiving a total of 29 points, split to 11 points from juries and an additional 18 points from public voting. Following this participation, drummer Stoyan Yankoulov became the first artist to represent Bulgaria three times at Eurovision after participating in both Eurovision 2007 and Eurovision 2013.
Eurovision 2026: This will be Bulgaria’s 15th participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. Bulgaria joined the competition in 2005 and achieved its best result in Eurovision 2017 when the singer Kristian Kostov finished in second place with the song “Beautiful Mess”.
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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.
