Eurovision Shock! Bulgaria and Dara Clinch 70th Contest

For this 27-year-old singer, this victory marks Bulgaria's first-ever win in the 70-year history of this music competition. Bulgaria only joined Eurovision in 2005 and had not participated in the previous three editions.

The artist performing the song described it as "pop music with folk roots." 'Bangaranga' is an energetic party anthem inspired by the 'Kukeri'—an ancient Bulgarian ritual in which men roam through villages wearing garments made of animal hides, bells, and animal masks.

The actual meaning of "Bangaranga" became a humorous topic of discussion that evening. Singer Dara stated, "Bangaranga is a special energy that resides within everyone; it is the feeling that anything is possible."

Bulgaria's unexpected victory has averted a major headache for the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and the other participating broadcasters. Had the runner-up, Israel, won, the organizers would have faced the difficult question of where to host the 2027 edition of the music competition.

The 70th anniversary of this grand musical extravaganza was celebrated in Vienna. Last year, Austrian opera singer JJ won the contest, leading to this year's event being hosted in Vienna.

Approximately 10,000 spectators enjoyed the show at Vienna's 'Wiener Stadthalle,' while the television audience is estimated to have exceeded 100 million viewers. This marked the third time that this Alpine nation had hosted the competition.

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In this grand finale, artists from 25 countries delivered their musical performances. Nations such as Bulgaria, Moldova, and Romania—which had been absent from the contest for the past few years—rejoined the competition this time around. In a controversial turn of events, this anniversary edition of Eurovision was celebrated without the participation of five countries that had boycotted the contest in protest against Israel's continued involvement. They argued that Israel should not be allowed to participate while attacks in Gaza were ongoing.

Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands, Slovenia, and Iceland—all declined to take part in the competition. This occurred after the EBU implemented certain changes to rules regarding multiple voting and state-sponsored promotion of songs, yet refrained from barring the Israeli broadcaster, 'Kan,' from participating in the contest. In December, Nemo—the Swiss singer who went on to win the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest—announced that they were returning their winning trophy in protest against Israel's presence in Vienna. Police reported that on Saturday, approximately 2,000 people gathered in Vienna's city center to protest against Israel's inclusion in the event.

That night, Israel's entry—"Michelle," a romantic pop song about a toxic relationship performed by Noam Betan—secured second place following a stellar performance in the public vote.

The Austrian broadcaster, ORF, had previously stated that it would not officially utilize the "anti-booing technology"—which had been employed in previous editions—for its domestic audience; however, when Betan took the stage, the crowd's reception was notably warmer than the welcome accorded to singer Yuval Refaeli in 2025.

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In the previous two editions of this song contest—which were highly polarized—Israel had performed exceptionally well in the public vote, securing second place in 2025. However, broadcasters from other nations raised concerns that the Israeli government was aggressively promoting its artists through its social media channels; this led to changes in the voting rules for the Vienna edition.

This year, fans were permitted to cast ten separate votes—a reduction compared to the 20 votes allowed in previous years. While it was permissible to vote for the same artist up to ten times, fans were not allowed to vote for the artist representing their own country.

During the announcement of the jury votes, the presenter representing Israel's broadcaster, KAN, alluded to the controversy surrounding last year's voting by remarking that they already knew who was going to win this year.

Prior to the final, KAN was compelled to issue an apology; this followed an incident in which they mocked the Croatian group 'Leljek,' comparing their traditional makeup to "Eilat henna tattoos." Leljek strongly condemned these comments, characterizing them as an insult to their culture and to the history of oppressed women. Their song, 'Andromeda,' is based on the Catholic resistance against the Ottoman Empire, and their makeup incorporates 'Sicanje'—a traditional tattooing practice historically used to prevent forced religious conversion.

The UK finished in last place, represented by 'Look Mum No Computer' (a.k.a. Sam Battle). This YouTube star builds his own synthesizers, but he failed to win over neutral voters with his song, 'Eins, Zwei, Drei.' This song received 'nul points' (zero points) in the public vote, which means that it did not rank in the top tier in any of the voting countries.

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