🇸🇪 News from the HoD meeting

Today, there is some interesting news from the Head of Delegation meeting. This meeting took place today, and some decisions are made about the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest:

Iceland

It was a big questionmark whether Iceland was going to take part or not. Icelandic broadcaster RUV stated that they, together with the artist, would make a decision. Icelandic artists expressed serious concern about their country taking part in a contest with Israel being there.
The decision now made is that Iceland will take part. Big releave for singer Hera Björk, who now will for sure represent her country.

Marcus & Martinus

Always, the place for the host country gets drawn at the HoD meeting. So this time, it was decided where Sweden would perform in the final. And the result is: they will open it! In 1984, Sweden opened the show too and won. Is it an omen?

Big Five

For the very first time, the artists from the Big Five countries – France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom – and host nation Sweden will each perform their entries in full live during the Semi-Finals. In other years, a part of the rehearsals was shown, but never the entire performance. Longer ago, even that didn’t happen and only a part of the video was shown.

The voting

A new feature for Malmö 2024 includes extending the timeframe for voting during the Grand Final.

Voting will start just before the first song is performed on Saturday, 11 May. This allows viewers to vote for the songs in real-time as they are being performed, a departure from the traditional method where voting commenced after all the entries were showcased. This approach was the standard since the introduction of public voting in 1997, with the exceptions of 2010 and 2011 when voting opened at the show’s start.

Moreover, fans from countries not competing (Rest of The World) will be given almost 24 hours to vote for their preferred songs before the start of each live show. For these international fans, online voting will be available right after the conclusion of the second dress rehearsal for each Semi-Final and the Grand Final, continuing until the commencement of the live broadcasts.

Related news

Eurovision 2026

Weekly Update

It’s Tuesday, March 3, 2026, and time for another weekly update! The past week brought a flurry of Eurovision news. Eight countries unveiled their entries for the 2026 contest. Denmark made a notable language choice for its entry. Vienna’s host team also revealed a Greenroom design inspired by local culture. Meanwhile, Spain’s broadcaster ignited debate over whether countries in conflict should be barred from the competition. Here are this week’s top stories: New Eurovision Entries Confirmed 🇱🇹 Lithuania: Lion Ceccah won Lithuania’s Eurovizija.LT 2026 final with the song “Sólo quiero más”, earning him the ticket to Eurovision 2026. 🇧🇬 Bulgaria: Dara will represent Bulgaria with “Bangaranga” after winning the multi-show national selection. This marks Bulgaria’s return to Eurovision after a three-year absence. 🇳🇴 Norway: Jonas Lovv triumphed at Norway’s Melodi Grand Prix 2026 with “Ya ya ya”, gaining the opportunity to represent Norway in Vienna. 🇫🇮 Finland: Duo Linda Lampenius & Pete Parkkonen won Finland’s UMK 2026 with “Liekinheitin”. The pair will carry Finland’s flag to the Eurovision stage in May. 🇩🇪 Germany: Singer Sarah Engels won Germany’s Das deutsche Finale 2026 with her song “Fire”. She will fly the German flag in Vienna this May. 🇷🇸 Serbia: The metal band Lavina emerged victorious in Serbia’s Pesma za Evroviziju ’26 with “Kraj mene”. Lavina will represent Serbia at Eurovision 2026, performing in the first semi-final on May 12. 🇮🇹 Italy: At Sanremo 2026, veteran artist Sal Da Vinci took the crown with “Per sempre sì”. He has confirmed he will sing this winning song for Italy at Eurovision in Vienna. 🇦🇺 Australia: Broadcaster SBS announced that pop superstar Delta Goodrem will represent Australia with her new single “Eclipse”. Goodrem’s participation adds star power as Australia celebrates Eurovision’s 70th edition. 2026 🇩🇰 Denmark’s Entry Stays in Danish Denmark’s Eurovision entry will be performed in Danish. Søren Torpegaard Lund, winner of Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2026, confirmed he will keep his song “Før vi går hjem” in Danish for Eurovision. This decision means Denmark will send its first fully Danish-language entry since 2021, doubling down on authenticity over a translated version. source: Instagram Søren 🇦🇹 Eurovision 2026 Greenroom: A Viennese Coffeehouse Host broadcaster ORF has revealed the design for the Eurovision 2026 Greenroom. It will be styled as a traditional Viennese coffee house. The Greenroom — where artists relax during the show — will feature decor inspired by Vienna’s famed coffeehouse culture. It will even connect directly to the main stage via a walkway through the audience. This is the first time a Eurovision Greenroom has been designed around a specific cultural theme. source: ORF 📷 ORF/Wieder Design Studios Other news 🇪🇸 Spain Pushes to Bar Countries in Conflict Spain’s public broadcaster RTVE is advocating a rules change in the Eurovision Song Contest. RTVE President José Pablo López urged the European Broadcasting Union to “open a serious debate” about excluding countries involved in active international conflicts. He proposed reforming EBU statutes so that nations at war cannot participate in Eurovision. This stance comes after Spain withdrew from Eurovision 2026 in protest of Israel’s inclusion, becoming one of five broadcasters boycotting the contest. The controversial proposal has sparked discussion about how politics and conflict intersect with Europe’s biggest music event. source: eldiario Agenda Date Country National Final Time Watch here: 4 March Romania Final 19:00 TVR1 and TVR1 digital   San Marino 1st semifinal 21:00 RTV 5 March San Marino 2nd semifinal 21:00 RTV   Israel song ? YouTube 6 March United Kingdom song 09:00 YouTube   San Marino Final 18:00 RTV 7 March Poland Final 17:45 TVP   Sweden Final 20:00 SVT   Portugal Final 22:00 RTP 08 March Poland Results 10:00 TVP   Czechia song ? YouTube   Switzerland song ? YouTube          

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Eurovision 2026
Martijn

Weekly Update

It’s Tuesday, March 3, 2026, and time for another weekly update! The past week brought a flurry of Eurovision news. Eight countries unveiled their entries for the 2026 contest. Denmark made a notable language choice for its entry. Vienna’s host team also revealed a Greenroom design inspired by local culture. Meanwhile, Spain’s broadcaster ignited debate over whether countries in conflict should be barred from the competition. Here are this week’s top stories: New Eurovision Entries Confirmed 🇱🇹 Lithuania: Lion Ceccah won Lithuania’s Eurovizija.LT 2026 final with the song “Sólo quiero más”, earning him the ticket to Eurovision 2026. 🇧🇬 Bulgaria: Dara will represent Bulgaria with “Bangaranga” after winning the multi-show national selection. This marks Bulgaria’s return to Eurovision after a three-year absence. 🇳🇴 Norway: Jonas Lovv triumphed at Norway’s Melodi Grand Prix 2026 with “Ya ya ya”, gaining the opportunity to represent Norway in Vienna. 🇫🇮 Finland: Duo Linda Lampenius & Pete Parkkonen won Finland’s UMK 2026 with “Liekinheitin”. The pair will carry Finland’s flag to the Eurovision stage in May. 🇩🇪 Germany: Singer Sarah Engels won Germany’s Das deutsche Finale 2026 with her song “Fire”. She will fly the German flag in Vienna this May. 🇷🇸 Serbia: The metal band Lavina emerged victorious in Serbia’s Pesma za Evroviziju ’26 with “Kraj mene”. Lavina will represent Serbia at Eurovision 2026, performing in the first semi-final on May 12. 🇮🇹 Italy: At Sanremo 2026, veteran artist Sal Da Vinci took the crown with “Per sempre sì”. He has confirmed he will sing this winning song for Italy at Eurovision in Vienna. 🇦🇺 Australia: Broadcaster SBS announced that pop superstar Delta Goodrem will represent Australia with her new single “Eclipse”. Goodrem’s participation adds star power as Australia celebrates Eurovision’s 70th edition. 2026 🇩🇰 Denmark’s Entry Stays in Danish Denmark’s Eurovision entry will be performed in Danish. Søren Torpegaard Lund, winner of Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2026, confirmed he will keep his song “Før vi går hjem” in Danish for Eurovision. This decision means Denmark will send its first fully Danish-language entry since 2021, doubling down on authenticity over a translated version. source: Instagram Søren 🇦🇹 Eurovision 2026 Greenroom: A Viennese Coffeehouse Host broadcaster ORF has revealed the design for the Eurovision 2026 Greenroom. It will be styled as a traditional Viennese coffee house. The Greenroom — where artists relax during the show — will feature decor inspired by Vienna’s famed coffeehouse culture. It will even connect directly to the main stage via a walkway through the audience. This is the first time a Eurovision Greenroom has been designed around a specific cultural theme. source: ORF 📷 ORF/Wieder Design Studios Other news 🇪🇸 Spain Pushes to Bar Countries in Conflict Spain’s public broadcaster RTVE is advocating a rules change in the Eurovision Song Contest. RTVE President José Pablo López urged the European Broadcasting Union to “open a serious debate” about excluding countries involved in active international conflicts. He proposed reforming EBU statutes so that nations at war cannot participate in Eurovision. This stance comes after Spain withdrew from Eurovision 2026 in protest of Israel’s inclusion, becoming one of five broadcasters boycotting the contest. The controversial proposal has sparked discussion about how politics and conflict intersect with Europe’s biggest music event. source: eldiario Agenda Date Country National Final Time Watch here: 4 March Romania Final 19:00 TVR1 and TVR1 digital   San Marino 1st semifinal 21:00 RTV 5 March San Marino 2nd semifinal 21:00 RTV   Israel song ? YouTube 6 March United Kingdom song 09:00 YouTube   San Marino Final 18:00 RTV 7 March Poland Final 17:45 TVP   Sweden Final 20:00 SVT   Portugal Final 22:00 RTP 08 March Poland Results 10:00 TVP   Czechia song ? YouTube   Switzerland song ? YouTube          

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