The fourth heat of Sweden’s Eurovision national selection, Melodifestivalen 2026, has ended with two acts qualifying directly to the final and one proceeding to the Second Chance round.
Screenshot: SVT
Europe’s largest and most beloved Eurovision national selection, Melodifestivalen 2026, continued tonight with its fourth heat! The event took place in Malmö Arena, Malmö – the host venue of Eurovision 2013 and 2024. Six songs competed tonight. The two songs receiving the most votes advanced directly to the grand final, scheduled for March 7 in Stockholm. Another song from each heat will qualify to a “Second Chance” round at the end of the fifth heat on February 28th, a week before the final, for another opportunity to reach the grand final.
The winner of the final will represent Sweden in the first half of the first semi-final of Eurovision 2026, in Vienna, Austria.
Results of the Fourth Heat
The first act to qualify directly to the final is Smash Into Pieces with their song “Hollow“. Cimberly joined them with the song “Eternity“. The act that will compete again in the “Second Chance” round for a spot in the final is Meira Omar with the song “Dooset Daram“.
Full Results of the Fourth Heat
- Smash Into Pieces – “Hollow” – First Place
- Cimberly – “Eternity” – Second Place (88 points)
- Meira Omar – “Dooset Daram” – Third Place (76 points)
- Erika Jonsson – “Från landet” – Fourth Place (58 points)
- Timo Räisänen – “Ingenting är efter oss” – Fifth Place (43 points)
- Felix Manu – “Hatar att jag älskar dig” – Sixth Place (39 points)
Click on the song’s title in order to listen!
Familiar Names From The Fourth Heat:
Meira Omar – Competed in Melodifestivalen last year with the hit song “Hush Hush,” which advanced to the final via the Second Chance round and finished in tenth place.
Smash Into Pieces – A band that competed two years in a row: in 2023 with the song “Six Feet Under,” which became a huge hit in Sweden and finished third in the preselection, which also included Eurovision winner Loreen; and in 2024 with the song “Heroes Are Calling,” which also finished third.
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 -
Saturday, February 21st, 2026 – Heat 4 in Malmö Arena, Malmö -
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 “Final Qual” round: This gives participants who placed third 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.
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”.
