Not all songs from Sweden’s “Melodifestivalen 2026” have been revealed, yet beloved singer Felicia is already close to breaking KAJ’s remarkable record from last year.
Screenshot: SVT
Europe’s largest and most beloved Eurovision national selection, Melodifestivalen 2026, is now in full swing. Two heats are already behind us, and three more remain to be held every Saturday from February 14th to February 28th. More than half of the competing songs are yet to be unveiled, but a clear favorite for victory has already emerged – after reports surfaced that one performer almost broke a particularly impressive record. What’s the record? All the details below.
Last Saturday saw the second heat of Sweden’s “Melodifestivalen”. The first artist to qualify directly for the final round was Felicia, who performed the song “My System”. The Melodifestivalen stage is no stranger to Felicia, who previously participated in 2024 under the pseudonym Fröken Snusk with the song “Unga & Fria”. While she did not manage to reach the final that year, both her character and song became a nationwide sensation.
As soon as it was announced that Felicia would make a comeback and compete again in Melodifestivalen, an enormous buzz erupted around her comeback, with many expecting nothing short of excellence from her new performance. Now, Felicia has proven those expectations right – delivering a performance that absolutely met (and exceeded) the hype. The beloved singer came dangerously close to breaking KAJ’s all-time record: her song became massively viral, amassing around 360,000 Spotify plays in just 24 hours – while KAJ’s track achieved slightly more at about 388,000 during the same time frame. These remarkable streaming figures position Felicia as one of the strongest contenders to win this year’s competition.
Could Felicia ultimately win Sweden’s prestigious “Melodifestivalen” and go on to represent her country in the world’s most watched song contest? We can only wait and see.
Format and 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, as tradition dictates, will 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:
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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.
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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.
Melodifestivalen 2026 Schedule:
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Saturday, January 31st, 2026 – Heat 1 in Saab Arena, Linköping -
Saturday, February 7th, 2026 – Heat 2 in Scandinavium, Göteborg -
Saturday, February 14th, 2026 – Heat 3 in Kristianstad Arena, Kristianstad
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Saturday, February 21st, 2026 – Heat 4 in Malmö Arena, Malmö
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Saturday, February 28th, 2026 – Heat 5 and Final qual in Gärdehov Arena, Sundsvall
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Saturday, March 7th, 2026 – Grand Final in Strawberry (Friends) Arena, Stockholm
Format and 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, as tradition dictates, will 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 the 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”.
