Australia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026
| Australia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eurovision Song Contest 2026 | ||||
| Participating broadcaster | Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) | |||
| Country |  Australia | |||
| Selection process | Internal selection | |||
| Announcement date | 1 March 2026 | |||
| Competing entry | ||||
| Song | "Eclipse" | |||
| Artist | Delta Goodrem | |||
| Songwriters |
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| Participation chronology | ||||
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Australia is set to be represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 with the song "Eclipse", written by Delta Goodrem, Ferras Alqaisi, Jonas Myrin and Michael Fatkin, and performed by Goodrem herself. The Australian participating broadcaster, the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), internally selected its entry for the contest.
Background
[edit]The Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) had broadcast the Eurovision Song Contest in Australia since 1983, and the contest had gained a cult following over that time, primarily due to the country's strong political and cultural ties with Europe. Paying tribute to this, the 2014 semi-finals included an interval act featuring Australian singer Jessica Mauboy.[1] Australian singers had also participated at Eurovision representing other countries, including Olivia Newton-John (United Kingdom 1974), two-time winner Johnny Logan (Ireland 1980 and 1987), Gina G (United Kingdom 1996), and Jane Comerford as lead singer of Texas Lightning (Germany 2006).[2]
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) invited SBS to participate in the contest representing Australia for the first time in 2015, as a guest participant to celebrate the 60th edition of the event, being granted automatic entry into the final along with the "Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom) and the host country (Austria).[3] It had since competed in every edition of the contest, i.e. nine times, being required to qualify from its semi-final since 2016. [4] In 2025, it entered the song "Milkshake Man" by Go-Jo, which failed to qualify for the final, ending in 11th place in the first semi-final with 41 points.
Before Eurovision
[edit]Internal selection
[edit]On 26 February 2026, the EBU announced through an Instagram post that SBS had internally selected the Australian entrant and entry for the contest and that they would be revealed on 1 March.[5] The entrant was announced to be Delta Goodrem with the song "Eclipse".[6]
At Eurovision
[edit]The Eurovision Song Contest 2026 will take place at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna, Austria, and consist of two semi-finals held on the respective dates of 12 and 14 May and the final on 16 May 2026. All nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Four" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final will progress to the final. On 12 January 2026, an allocation draw was held to determine which of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show, each country will perform in; the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot.[7] Australia was scheduled for the second half of the second semi-final.[8]
References
[edit]- ^ Vincent, Peter (2014-05-08). "Jessica Mauboy performs at Eurovision Song Contest". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2021-10-28.
- ^ "Eurovision Song Contest invites Australia to join 'world's biggest party'". The Guardian. 2015-02-10. Retrieved 2021-10-28.
- ^ "Australia to compete in the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 2015-02-10. Retrieved 2021-10-28.
- ^ "Australia". Eurovision.tv. EBU. Retrieved 2023-12-05.
- ^ Granger, Anthony (2026-02-26). "Australia: Eurovision 2026 Entry to be Revealed on March 1". Eurovoix. Retrieved 2026-02-27.
- ^ "Delta Goodrem will represent Australia in May". Eurovision.com. EBU. 2026-03-01. Retrieved 2026-03-01.
- ^ "The Semi-Final Draw for Vienna 2026: All you need to know". Eurovision.com. EBU. 2026-01-06. Retrieved 2026-01-06.
- ^ "Vienna 2026: Semi-Final Draw results". Eurovision.com. EBU. 2026-01-12. Retrieved 2026-01-12.