Watch tonight at 18:00 CET as Ukraine’s “Vidbir 2026” airs, choosing the country’s entry for Eurovision 2026. A link for viewing is provided.
Tonight at 18:00 CET, “Vidbir 2026” will take place, culminating in the selection of the representative and song for Ukraine at Eurovision 2026 in Vienna, Austria. Ten contestants will compete, with the winner chosen by a combination of 50% public vote and 50% jury vote. In case of a tie, the public vote will be the deciding factor.
The final will begin at 18:00 and continue until 21:00 CET.
To watch Ukraine’s “Vidbir 2026” – click here!
“Vidbir 2026” will be hosted by Timur Miroshnychenko and Lesia Nikitiuk. Miroshnychenko was one of the hosts of Eurovision 2017 in Kyiv, hosted Junior Eurovision in Ukraine in 2009 and 2013, and has been Ukraine’s Eurovision commentator since 2007. Nikitiuk, a beloved and well-known host, will be hosting “Vidbir” for the first time.
During the evening there will be several guest performances by Ukrainian Eurovision participants. Ziferblat with the song “Bird of Pray“, the winner of Eurovision 2016 Jamalaׂׂׂׂ, Svitlana Tarabarova will perform with Ukraine’s 2026 representatives for the Junior Eurovision Song Contest. The evening’s special guest will be Moldova’s representative at Eurovision 2026, Satoshi with the song “Viva, Moldova”.
Who to Watch Tonight?
There are two clear favorites to win tonight. In a survey we conducted Jerri Heil with the song “Catharticus“ holds a significant lead among our readers and will perform her song. Close behind her in second place is Monokate, who will take the stage with the song “TYT“. Among the Euromix team, however, the rankings are reversed: Monokate is considered the leading contender for victory, with Jerri Heil right behind her.
Jerri Heil is also marked as the favorite when looking at streaming data on Spotify and YouTube, ranking first on both platforms by a considerable margin. Monokate places second in Spotify streams, but drops to third on YouTube, where LELÉKA, with the song “Ridnim” claims the second spot.
Who Are the Judges of Vidbir 2026?
• Ruslana – Winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song “Wild Dances“.
• Zlata Ognevich – Represented Ukraine at the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 with the song “Gravity“, finishing in third place.
• Yevhen Filatov – Ukrainian singer and composer.
• Vitaly Drozdov – Chief producer at the media company “TAVR Media” and director at the Ukrainian radio station “HitFM”.
• Kostyantyn Tomilchenko – Producer, choreographer, and director who has staged numerous Eurovision performances, including the 2016 winning performance by Jamala with the song “1944“.
הצגת פוסט זה באינסטגרם
List of Contestants and Their Songs:
- Valeriya Force – Open Our Hearts
- MOLODI – The Legends
- Monokate – TYT
- The Elliens – Crawling Whispers
- LAUD – Lightkeeper
- LELÉKA – Ridnim
- Mr. Vel – Do or Done
- KHAYAT – Hertzi
- Jerri Heil – Catharticus
- ShchukaRyba – Moya Zeml
Click on the song title to listen!
Familiar Faces Among the Finalists:
- Jerry Heil – Ukraine’s 2024 Eurovision representative alongside Alyona Alyona with the song “Teresa & Maria”, finishing third in the grand final. Jerry also competed in Vidbir in 2023 and 2020.
- Monokate – Ukraine’s representative at Eurovision 2020 and 2021 as part of the band Go_A, which placed fifth in 2021.
- Olena Usenko – Member of The Elliens, Ukraine’s Junior Eurovision entrant with “Vazhil”, placing sixth.
- LAUD – Competed in the 2018 preselection with “Waiting”, finishing fourth.
- MOLODI – Competed in the 2025 preselection with “My Sea”, finishing second.
Ukraine at Eurovision: Huge Success and an Impressive Record
Ukraine, together with Sweden, is among the two most successful countries in Eurovision in the 21st century. The country has won the competition three times – in 2004 with Ruslana and her song “Wild Dances”, in 2016 with Jamala and her song “1944”, and in 2022 with Kalush Orchestra and their song “Stefania”. In addition, Ukraine has finished twice in second place (2007 & 2008) and twice in third place (2013 & 2024) — and has never missed a Eurovision final, holding this distinction alongside Luxembourg, which returned to the contest in 2024.
Ukraine at Eurovision 2025
“Bird of Pray” is the name of the song that was performed by Ziferblat, representing Ukraine in Eurovision 2025. Ukraine qualified for the final from the first semi-final of the contest and finished 9th overall with 218 points. Ukraine finished 6th in the televoting and 14th in the juries.
The Ukrainian result is their worst one since 2018.
Eurovision 2026: This will be Ukraine’s 21st participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. Ukraine joined the competition in 2003 and has won it three times. Ukraine’s last victory was in Eurovision 2022 with the song “Stefania” performed by Kalush Orchestra.
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