One of the constants in Eurovision is the accusations of rigged televoting and favoritism between countries in the jury vote. The controversial 2026 edition took Bulgaria by surprise with Dara and her urban track Bangaranga. Below, we show some curiosities about the points distributed on Saturday night at the Wiener Stadthalle, the Austrian venue for the contest on this occasion.
Jury in line with the polls
Bulgaria (204 points), Australia (165), Denmark (165), France (144), and Finland (141) were the five countries that achieved the highest scores from the professional juries. Three of them (Finland, Australia, and Denmark) appeared as the best positioned in the official polls to win, although Denmark dropped positions as the days went by.
France was also well positioned throughout the week, although the same thing happened to it as to Denmark, and it fell in the rankings on the day of the final. So the great support Bulgaria received was the only surprise.
However, it was notable how spread out the jury’s 12 points were this year; Dara’s Bangaranga received the maximum professional score on four occasions out of 35 possible. This was thanks to Australia, Denmark, Lithuania, and Malta.
The televote rewarded the returnees
Although it may seem that Israel has lost Eurovision again, the truth is that it is becoming an increasingly favorable festival for its interests. Five countries left this edition due to opposition to its presence in the contest: Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Estonia, and Iceland. Therefore, there are five fewer enemies at the time of voting and five fewer critical voices within the edition.
With the intention of compensating for these absences, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) managed to convince several countries that were not participating, mainly for economic reasons, to return in 2026. Bulgaria, Moldova, and Romania decided to ignore the conflict related to Israel and accepted. This avoided the number of participants in this edition (35 countries) being even lower than it was, the lowest since 2004.
These are the five countries most favored by the televote in Eurovision 2026: Bulgaria (312 points), Romania (232), Israel (220), Moldova (183), and Ukraine (167). They are the three countries that have returned along with the two usuals in the top 5 of the popular vote over the last five years, Israel itself and Ukraine.
Bulgaria did not participate in 2023, 2024, or 2025. On its return in 2026, it managed to dominate the televote and achieve its first victory in Eurovision. Romania was absent in 2024 and 2025, and on its return, it gained audience support and the highest total points in its history. And Moldova, which was not present in 2025, also made it among the viewers’ favorites.
Bulgaria received 12 points on nine occasions out of 36 possible. These came from Armenia, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the United Kingdom, and the group called Rest of the World, which included Spain.
VRT, the Flemish television responsible for representing Belgium in 2027, has already warned of a possible withdrawal due to Israel’s presence and the EBU’s handling of this crisis. To participate, it asks for exactly the same as RTVE from Spain requested and did not happen: a show of hands vote on which countries want Israel to remain. This would mean one less broadcaster with a critical voice against Israel for 2027. The Eurovision organizer has not closed the door to Russia’s return, even if the invasion of Ukraine remains active.
Sociopolitical alliances continue
The late José Luis Uribarri, legendary Eurovision commentator for RTVE, would have predicted the following votes between neighboring countries (both from the professional jury and the public) that usually support each other every year, regardless of who takes the stage.
– Cyprus received the maximum score from Greece: 12 points from the televote and 12 from the professional jury.
– Greece received the maximum score from Cyprus, both from the jury and the viewers.
– Denmark received 24 points from Norway, 20 from Sweden, and 18 from Finland. Iceland did not participate.
– Finland received 24 points from Sweden, 18 points from Norway, and 16 from Denmark.
– Serbia received 24 points from Montenegro and another 24 from Croatia.
– Croatia received 16 points from Montenegro and 12 from Serbia.
– Albania received 16 points from Montenegro and 16 from Croatia.
