French singer-songwriter Vianney is at the centre of rumours suggesting he may represent France at the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 in Vienna.
Rumours spark after The Voice exit
Vianney, known for hits like Je m’en vais or La Même (with GIMS) and for his multiple awards has recently stepped away from television and public life. According to Public, his departure from The Voice was linked to a possible Eurovision bid:
“That’s the reason why he left The Voice. He was also offered to be the mentor of the next Star Academy, but he had to make a choice and eventually declined,” an anonymous source told Public.
Journalist Clément Garin has reported that Vianney has already prepared a song for the contest.
Retreat and reinvention
Earlier this summer, Vianney announced he was retreating from the spotlight to focus on building a cabin in the woods and working on new music.
“These next months, I plan to be more alone, in more silence, a little further away too… Maybe I need to be a bit of a carpenter to relearn how to be a singer,” he explained in June on Instagram.
The rumour was first spread by Clément Garin, the same journalist who previously reported that Belgian singer Loïc Nottet had been internally selected for Eurovision 2026. That claim was later denied by RTBF, who clarified that no artist had yet been chosen.
France’s Eurovision journey
France is a powerhouse in Eurovision, debuting in the first Contest in 1956. Their first entries finished in second place, but no scores were ever published. Since then, France has gone on to win the Contest five times. The most recent win came in 1977, with Marie Myriam’s “L’oiseau et l’enfant”, scoring 136 points.France has seen a rebirth in results following a change in direction in 2016. Amir finished in 6th position for France with “J’ai cherché”, followed by 12th, 13th and 16th places respectively.
For 2025, France continued to choose internally, choosing Louane with her song “Maman”. At the close of voting in Basel, France finished in 7th place, earning 230 points. Of these, 180 points were given by the juries, whilst the televote allocated an extra 50 points to France.
Would you like to see Vianney step onto the Eurovision stage for France in 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: Public
Photo credit: AFP
Thomas James 
Rory Gannon