It’s been just over than 24 hours since JJ won the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest, and Austria’s ORF, is already looking into the selection of their artists for next year, with the confirmation that ORF will once again go internal, as they intend to host the competition.
Don’t fix what’s not broken approach for Austria
ORF has confirmed the internal selection, and that a public submission will take place, and that various selection stages will occur, with ORF officials making the choice for JJ’s successor between a shortlist.
The confirmation confirms the continuation of the current selection method, with ORF using internal selections to select its representatives continuously since 2017. Further details about Austria’s internal selection for Eurovision 2026, will be revealed in due course.
Austria’s Eurovision Journey
In 1957, Austria made their debut into the Eurovision Song Contest, where Bob Martin represented the landlocked nation with the song “Wohin, kleines Pony?”. At the close of voting, it managed to place 10th overall. Since their debut, Austria has participated 56 times (being in the final 49 times), and have won the competition on two occasions in 1966 and 2014.
For 2025, JJ was internally selected to represent Austria with their song “Wasted Love”. In Basel, JJ qualified for the final, where he then went on to win the contest after receiving 436 points from the Juries and Televotes combined.
What are your hopes for ORF’s plans for 2026? As always, please let us know what you think by getting involved in the comments below. Also, be sure to follow ‘That Eurovision Site’ on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Threads, tumblr, and Bluesky for more information about Eurovision 2026!
News Source: ORF
Photo Credit: Sarah Louise Bennett/EBU
Giwrgos Oiko