70 songs written by 143 songwriters have won the Eurovision Song Contest, an international song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union. The contest, which has been broadcast every year since its debut in 1956 (with the exception of 2020), is one of the longest-running television programmes in the world. The contest's winner has been determined using numerous voting techniques throughout its history; centre to these have been the awarding of points to countries by juries or televoters. The country awarded the most points is declared the winner.[1] The first Eurovision Song Contest was not won on points, but by votes (two per country), and only the winner was announced.[2]
There have been 67 contests, with one winner each year except the tied 1969 contest, which had four. 27 countries have won the contest, with Switzerland winning the first contest in 1956. The countries with the highest number of wins are Ireland and Sweden with seven wins each. Two people have won more than once as a performer: Ireland's Johnny Logan, who performed "What's Another Year" in 1980 and "Hold Me Now" in 1987, and Sweden's Loreen, who performed "Euphoria" in 2012 and "Tattoo" in 2023. Logan is also one of seven songwriters to have written more than one winning entry ("Hold Me Now" in 1987 and "Why Me?" in 1992, performed by Linda Martin),[3] and is the only person to have three Eurovision victories to their credit, as either singer, songwriter or both. The other six songwriters with more than one winning entry to their credit are Willy van Hemert (Netherlands, 1957 and 1959), Yves Dessca (Monaco, 1971 and Luxembourg, 1972), Rolf Løvland (Norway, 1985 and 1995), Brendan Graham (Ireland, 1994 and 1996), and Thomas G:son and Peter Boström (both for Sweden's entries in 2012 and 2023).
Relatively few winners of the Eurovision Song Contest have gone on to achieve major success in the music industry. The most notable winners who have gone on to become international stars are ABBA, who won the 1974 contest for Sweden with their song "Waterloo",[4] and Céline Dion, who won the 1988 contest for Switzerland with the song "Ne partez pas sans moi".[5] More recently, Duncan Laurence, who won the 2019 contest for the Netherlands with "Arcade", experienced worldwide streaming success with the song as a sleeper hit throughout 2020 and 2021,[6] while Måneskin, winners of the 2021 contest for Italy with "Zitti e buoni", subsequently achieved worldwide popularity in the months following their victory.[7]
Since 2008, the winner has been awarded an official winner's trophy of the Eurovision Song Contest. The trophy is a handmade piece of sandblasted glass in the shape of a 1950s microphone.[8] The songwriters and composers of the winning entry receive smaller versions of the trophy. The original design was created by Kjell Engman of Kosta Boda, who specialises in glass art.[9]
Winners by year
Performers and songwriters with multiple wins
The following individuals have won the Eurovision Song Contest as a performer or songwriter more than once.
| Wins | Name | Wins as performer | Wins as songwriter |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Johnny Logan | 1980, 1987 | 1987, 1992 |
| 2 | Willy van Hemert | — | 1957, 1959 |
| Yves Dessca | — | 1971, 1972 | |
| Rolf Løvland | 1995 | 1985, 1995 | |
| Brendan Graham | — | 1994, 1996 | |
| Loreen | 2012, 2023 | 2023 | |
| Peter Boström | — | 2012, 2023 | |
| Thomas G:son | — |
Observations
Eleven Eurovision winners (alongside three non-winners) were featured at the special concert Congratulations: 50 Years of the Eurovision Song Contest in 2005, in which ABBA's "Waterloo" was voted the most popular song of the contest's first fifty years.[81]
Ireland and Sweden have won seven times, more than any other country. Ireland also won the contest for three consecutive years (1992, 1993, 1994), the only country to ever do so. Three countries have won twice in a row: Spain (1968 and 1969), Luxembourg (1972 and 1973) and Israel (1978 and 1979). Serbia is the only country to win with its debut entry (in 2007), although Serbia had competed previously as part of Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro. By contrast, Portugal holds the record for waiting the longest to achieve their first win, doing so in 2017; 53 years after their first appearance in the contest. Austria holds the record for longest wait in between wins, having won for the first time in 1966 and a second time in 2014. Under the voting system used between 1975 and 2015, the winner of the contest was decided by the final voting nation on eleven occasions.[N 1]
Changes to the voting system, including a steady growth in the number of countries participating and voting, means that the points earned are not comparable across the decades. Portugal's Salvador Sobral holds the record of the highest number of points in the contest's history, earning 758 with the song "Amar pelos dois". Norway's Alexander Rybak holds the largest margin of victory in absolute points, a 169-point cushion over second place in 2009. Italy's Gigliola Cinquetti holds the record for largest victory by percentage, scoring almost three times as many as second place (49 points compared with 17 by the runner-up) in the 1964 contest. The lowest winning score is the 18 points (of the 160 total votes cast by 16 countries) scored by each of the four winning countries in 1969.
Under the voting system used from 1975 until 2015, in which each country gives maximum points to its first place choice, Sweden's Loreen won the 2012 contest with the most ever first place votes earned, receiving first place votes from 18 of 41 countries (excluding themselves). The 1976 winner for the United Kingdom, Brotherhood of Man, holds the record of the highest average score per participating country, with an average of 9.65 points received per country. 2011 Azerbaijani winners Ell and Nikki hold the lowest average score for a winning song under that system, receiving 5.14 points per country.
Around two-thirds of the winning songs were performed in the second half of the final. According to the official statistics, until 2019, only 34.3% of the winning songs were performed in the first half, including 3 of the 4 winners in 1969. The only song to win without being clearly in one half or the other was the Israeli entry "Hallelujah" in 1979, which was drawn 10th out of 19 songs. Between 2005 and 2013, all the winning songs were performed in the second half of the final's running order.[82]
The United Kingdom has finished second sixteen times at Eurovision (most recently in 2022), more than any other country. France has finished third and fourth seven times at Eurovision (most recently respectively in 1981 and in 2001), and Sweden has finished fifth nine times at Eurovision (most recently in 2019). The country with the most top three places that has never won the contest is Malta, having finished second in 2002 and 2005 and third in 1992 and 1998. Another island nation, Iceland, has also finished second twice, in 1999 and 2009. With Portugal achieving its first win in 2017, Malta now also holds the record for longest wait for a first win, having first entered the contest in 1971 (although Cyprus has more winless appearances, with 36 since debuting in 1981, due to Malta taking a break from 1976 through 1990). Spain holds the current record for longest drought by a winning country, having last won in 1969. They are followed by France (1977) and Belgium (1986).
There is no official runner-up for two of the contests – 1956 and 1969. In 1956 only the winner, Switzerland, was announced, whilst there were speculative reports that Germany ended up in second place with "Im Wartesaal zum großen Glück" by Walter Andreas Schwarz,[citation needed] given that Germany was chosen to host the 1957 contest. In 1969, four songs shared first place by achieving the same number of points; fifth place was achieved by Switzerland, which is not considered an official runner-up, because of the draw for first place.
Discrepancies between the jury and televote
Since the re-introduction of the juries alongside televoting in 2009, both the jury and the televote have agreed on the winner on only six occasions: in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2017. Two winners have won without placing first in either area: Ukraine's Jamala in 2016, who finished second in the jury vote behind Australia and second in the televote behind Russia, and the Netherlands' Duncan Laurence in 2019, who placed third behind North Macedonia and Sweden in the jury vote, and second behind Norway in the televote.
Sweden won both the combined vote and jury vote in 2015 and 2023, represented by Måns Zelmerlöw and Loreen (who had also won in 2012), respectively. However, in the televote, Sweden came third behind Italy and Russia in 2015, and second behind Finland in 2023.
Azerbaijan's Ell and Nikki in 2011, Israel's Netta in 2018, Italy's Måneskin in 2021 and Ukraine's Kalush Orchestra in 2022 all won both the combined vote and televote. However, in the jury vote, Azerbaijan came second behind Italy in 2011, Israel came third behind Austria and Sweden in 2018, Italy came fourth behind Switzerland, France and Malta in 2021, and Ukraine came fourth behind the United Kingdom, Sweden and Spain in 2022.[83]
| Year | Country | Jury place | Televote place | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 |  Norway | 1st | 1st | [84] |
| 2010 |  Germany | 1st | 1st | [85] |
| 2011 |  Azerbaijan | 2nd | 1st | [86] |
| 2012 |  Sweden | 1st | 1st | [87] |
| 2013 |  Denmark | 1st | 1st | [88] |
| 2014 |  Austria | 1st | 1st | [89] |
| 2015 | Sweden | 1st | 3rd | [90] |
| 2016 |  Ukraine | 2nd | 2nd | [91] |
| 2017 |  Portugal | 1st | 1st | [92] |
| 2018 |  Israel | 3rd | 1st | [93] |
| 2019 |  Netherlands | 3rd | 2nd | [94] |
| 2021 |  Italy | 4th | 1st | [95] |
| 2022 | Ukraine | 4th | 1st | [96] |
| 2023 | Sweden | 1st | 2nd | [97] |
Winners by country
The first repeat winner was the Netherlands, completed in 1959. France was the first country to win three times (completed in 1962), four times (completed in 1969), and five times (completed in 1977). Ireland was the first country to win six times (completed in 1994) and seven times (completed in 1996). The first country to win two consecutive contests was Spain, from 1968 to 1969. The first country to win three consecutive contests was Ireland, from 1992 to 1994.
† | Inactive – countries which participated in the past but did not appear in the most recent contest, and have not announced their appearance in the upcoming contest |
◇ | Ineligible – countries whose broadcasters are no longer part of the EBU and are therefore ineligible to participate |
‡ | Former – countries which previously participated but no longer exist |
| Wins | Country | Years | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 |  Ireland | 1970, 1980, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996 | [98] |
| Sweden | 1974, 1984, 1991, 1999, 2012, 2015, 2023 | [99] | |
| 5 |  France | 1958, 1960, 1962, 1969, 1977 | [100] |
 Luxembourg | 1961, 1965, 1972, 1973, 1983 | [101] | |
 United Kingdom | 1967, 1969, 1976, 1981, 1997 | [102] | |
| Netherlands | 1957, 1959, 1969, 1975, 2019 | [103] | |
| 4 | Israel | 1978, 1979, 1998, 2018 | [104] |
| 3 | Norway | 1985, 1995, 2009 | [105] |
| Denmark | 1963, 2000, 2013 | [106] | |
| Italy | 1964, 1990, 2021 | [107] | |
| Ukraine | 2004, 2016, 2022 | [108] | |
| 2 |  Spain | 1968, 1969 | [109] |
 Switzerland | 1956, 1988 | [110] | |
| Germany | 1982, 2010 | [111] | |
| Austria | 1966, 2014 | [112] | |
| 1 |  Monaco † | 1971 | [113] |
 Belgium | 1986 | [114] | |
 Yugoslavia ‡ | 1989 | [115] | |
 Estonia | 2001 | [116] | |
 Latvia | 2002 | [117] | |
 Turkey † | 2003 | [118] | |
 Greece | 2005 | [119] | |
 Finland | 2006 | [120] | |
 Serbia | 2007 | [121] | |
 Russia ◇ | 2008 | [122] | |
| Azerbaijan | 2011 | [123] | |
| Portugal | 2017 | [124] |
The year 1969 is in italics to indicate the joint (four-way) win.
Gallery
Performers
Corry Brokken, winner of the 1957 contest for the Netherlands.
André Claveau, winner of the 1958 contest for France.
Teddy Scholten, winner of the 1959 contest for the Netherlands.
Jacqueline Boyer, winner of the 1960 contest for France.
Jean-Claude Pascal, winner of the 1961 contest for Luxembourg.
Isabelle Aubret, winner of the 1962 contest for France.
Gigliola Cinquetti, winner of the 1964 contest for Italy.
France Gall, winner of the 1965 contest for Luxembourg.
Udo Jürgens, winner of the 1966 contest for Austria.
Sandie Shaw, winner of the 1967 contest for the United Kingdom.
Lenny Kuhr, one of the four winners of the 1969 contest for the Netherlands.
Frida Boccara, one of the four winners of the 1969 contest for France.
Vicky Leandros, winner of the 1972 contest for Luxembourg.
Anne-Marie David, winner of the 1973 contest for Luxembourg.
Brotherhood of Man, winners of the 1976 contest for the United Kingdom
Marie Myriam, winner of the 1977 contest for France.
Bucks Fizz, winner of the 1981 contest for the United Kingdom.
Nicole Hohloch, winner of the 1982 contest for Germany.
Bobbysocks!, winners of the 1985 contest for Norway.
Sandra Kim, winner of the 1986 contest for Belgium.
Celine Dion, winner of the 1988 contest for Switzerland.
Toto Cutugno, winner of the 1990 contest for Italy.
Carola Häggkvist, winner of the 1991 contest for Sweden.
Linda Martin, winner of the 1992 contest for Ireland.
Niamh Kavanagh, winner of the 1993 contest for Ireland.
Secret Garden, winner of the 1995 contest for Norway.
Eimear Quinn, winner of the 1996 contest for Ireland.
Katrina and the Waves, winners of the 1997 contest for the United Kingdom.
Dana International, winner of the 1998 contest for Israel.
Charlotte Nilsson, winner of the 1999 contest for Sweden.
Olsen Brothers, winners of the 2000 contest for Denmark.
Sertab Erener, winner of the 2003 contest for Turkey.
Helena Paparizou, winner of the 50th contest, the 2005 contest, for Greece.
Marija Šerifović, winner of the 2007 contest for Serbia.
Dima Bilan, winner of the 2008 contest for Russia.
Alexander Rybak, winner of the 2009 contest for Norway.
Ell and Nikki, winners of the 2011 contest for Azerbaijan.
Emmelie de Forest, winner of the 2013 contest for Denmark.
Conchita Wurst, winner of the 2014 contest for Austria.
Måns Zelmerlöw, winner of the 2015 contest for Sweden.
Salvador Sobral, winner of the 2017 contest for Portugal.
Duncan Laurence, winner of the 2019 contest for the Netherlands.
Kalush Orchestra, winners of the 2022 contest for Ukraine.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
_zingt,_Bestanddeelnr_923-3687.jpg)
.jpg)
_winnaar_Johnny_Logan_in_aktie,_Bestanddeelnr_930-7803.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
_cropped_2.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
_20180508_EuroVisionary_(cropped).jpg)
Songwriters
Émile Gardaz, winner of the 1956 contest for Switzerland.
Nicola Salerno, winner of the 1964 contest for Italy.
Serge Gainsbourg, winner of the 1965 contest for Luxembourg.- Udo Jürgens, winner of the 1966 contest for Austria.
Manuel de la Calva and Ramón Arcusa (known as Dúo Dinámico), winners of the 1968 contest for Spain.
Benny Andersson, winner of the 1974 contest for Sweden.
Eddy Ouwens, winner of the 1975 contest for Netherlands.
Tony Hiller, winner of the 1976 contest for United Kingdom.
Nurit Hirsh, winner of the 1978 contest for Israel.-
- Toto Cutugno, winner of the 1990 contest for Italy.
-
Maian Kärmas, winner of the 2001 contest for Estonia.-
Sertab Erener, winner of the 2003 contest for Turkey.-
Christos Dantis, winner of the 2005 contest for Greece.-
- Alexander Rybak, winner of the 2009 contest for Norway.
Julie Frost, winner of the 2010 contest for Germany.
Stefan Örn, winner of the 2011 contest for Azerbaijan.
Thomas Stengaard (left), Julia Fabrin Jakobsen (centre) and Lise Cabble (right), winner of the 2013 contest for Denmark.
Anton Malmberg Hård af Segerstad, winner of the 2015 contest for Sweden.
Luísa Sobral, winner of the 2017 contest for Portugal.
Doron Medalie, winner of the 2018 contest for Israel.
Moa Carlebecker, winner of the 2023 contest for Sweden.
_by_Erling_Mandelmann_-_2.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
See also
Notes and references
Notes
References
Bibliography
- Eurovision Song Contest: History by events
- O'Connor, John Kennedy (2010). The Eurovision Song Contest: The Official History (2nd ed.). London: Carlton Books. ISBN 978-1-84732-521-1.