Bulgaria has won the 2026 Eurovision song contest after singer Dara swept to victory with the song Bangaranga.
The 27-year-old singer’s triumph is a first victory in the 70-year history of the song contest for Bulgaria, which only joined Eurovision in 2005 and sat out the last three editions.
Described by its performer as “pop music with folklore bones”, Bangaranga is a pulsating party anthem inspired by kukeri – an ancient Bulgarian ritual where men roam through villages dressed in furry costumes with bells and animal masks.
The precise meaning of “bangaranga” became one of the running jokes of the night. Singer Dara said “bangaranga is a special energy that everyone has got in themselves, a feeling that everything is possible.”
Bulgaria’s surprise win means the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and other participating broadcasters will be spared a major headache. Had second-placed Israel won, organisers would have faced difficult questions over where to host the song contest’s 2027 edition.
The 70th anniversary of the musical extravaganza took place in Vienna, after Austria’s operatic contestant JJ triumphed last year.
About 10,000 spectators watched the show at Vienna’s Wiener Stadthalle venue, with an expected TV audience in excess of 100 million. It was the third time the Alpine republic has hosted the event.
The grand final saw musical acts representing 25 countries, with Bulgaria, Moldova and Romania returning after being absent in previous years. Controversially, Eurovision’s anniversary was celebrated without five nations who boycotted the event over the continued participation of Israel while attacks continue in Gaza.
Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Iceland all declined to participate after the EBU changed the rules around multiple votes and state-sponsored promotion of songs, but stopped short of preventing Israeli broadcaster Kan participating. In December, Nemo, the Swiss singer who won the 2024 Eurovision song contest said they were handing back their trophy in protest over Israel’s presence in Vienna.
Police said about 2,000 people turned out for a protest against Israel’s inclusion in Vienna’s city centre earlier on Saturday.
On the night, Israel’s entry Michelle, a romantic pop song about a toxic relationship performed by Noam Bettan, came in at second place after performing strongly in the public vote.
Austrian broadcaster ORF had said in advance it would not officially employ so-called anti-booing technology for home viewers used at some previous editions, but the crowd reaction to Bettan taking to the stage was warm compared to singer Yuval Raphael’s reception in 2025.
There was some booing during the read-out of Israel’s public vote, in response to a group of fans continuing to chant Israel’s name.
In the highly polarised previous two editions of the song contest, Israel had performed strongly in the public vote, coming second in 2025. Other nation’s broadcasters voiced concerns about the Israeli government’s heavy promotion of its acts through its social media channels, however, leading voting rules to be changed for Vienna.
This year, fans were allowed to cast ten individual votes, down from 20 in previous years. Voting for the same act ten times was allowed, but voting for the act from the country fans are calling from wasn’t.
During the read-out of the jury votes, the presenter representing Israel’s broadcaster KAN appeared to reference last year’s voting controversy when he said he already knew who was going to win this year.
In the run-up to the final, KAN was forced to apologise after mocking Croatian group Lelek by comparing their traditional makeup to “henna tattoos in Eilat.” Lelek condemned the comments as a disrespectful slight against their culture and the history of oppressed women. Their song, Andromeda, centres on Catholic resistance to the Ottoman Empire, with their makeup featuring sicanje – a folk tattooing custom used to prevent forced conversions.
The UK finished last with Look Mum No Computer, AKA Sam Battle. The YouTube star makes his own synthesisers, but failed to win over neutral voters with song Eins, Zwei, Drei. The song received nul point in the public vote, meaning it did not make it into the top ten in any of the voting countries.
With the exception of Sam Ryder’s Space Man in 2022, the UK has enjoyed poor fortune in the competition over the last decade or so, including picking up the dreaded nil points with James Newman in 2021.
Belgium and Germany also received zero points in the public vote.
Another UK-based act, Boy George of Culture Club, failed to appear in the grand final after the San Marino entry that he had a cameo role in – Senhit’s Superstar – failed to qualify from the first semi-final. Australia’s entry, sung by Delta Goodrem, came 4th.