We at That Eurovision Site will be ranking national finals throughout this coming season. The next national final that the team have taken a closer look at is Festival da Canção, which will take place on 21st of February. Festival da Canção will select the Eurovision representative for Portugal in Vienna.
Who is taking part in the first Festival da Canção 2026 semi final?
There are 8 artists taking part in the first semi final of Festival da Canção. The 8 artists taking part are as follows:
| Entrant | Entry |
| Agridoce | “Onde Quero Estar“ |
| André Amaro | “Dá-me a Tua Mão“ |
| Bateu Matou | “Nos Teus Olhos“ |
| Dinis Mota | “Jurei“ |
| Evaya | “Sprint“ |
| Mário Marta | “Pertencer“ |
| Marquise | “Chuva“ |
| Nunca Mates o Mandarim | “Fumo“ |
Who is our winner from Festival da Canção?
We ranked the songs taking part in the final, using a 1-8 ranking. 1 being our favourite, 8 being our least favourite song. We then calculated the average of all our rankings.
2nd. Mário Marta – “Pertencer“ (4.00):
2nd. Bateu Matou – “Nos Teus Olhos“ (4.00):
1st. Dinis Mota – “Jurei“ (1.50):
What did some of our team members have to say about the NF as a whole?
Rory: This semi-final is perhaps the stronger of the two semi-finals for me, with a nice balance of genres including pop, Afrobeat, and rock that really shows off just how diverse the Portuguese music scene is. Not all of it is to my taste, but I am a big fan of what RTP is trying to do here, and that is fine, you don’t have to like every song. It’s a very nice semi-final, and I am looking forward to seeing what RTP has in store for us this year!
What is Festival da Canção?
Festival da Canção is a Portuguese music festival held every year. Artists apply, but they also get invited to take part in the festival by the broadcaster RTP. Festival Da Canção selects the Portuguese representative for the Eurovision Song Contest. This national final is one of the oldest national finals and has been going for 57 years. The first edition of Festival da Canção was all the way back in 1964. The festival was held in 1970 and 2000 despite the country not taking part in the contest, first due to a boycott, and then in 2000 due to be relegated from the contest.
Portugal’s Eurovision Journey
Portugal debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest with António Calvário’s “Oração” in 1964. Since then, Portugal has participated in the competition 55 times – appearing the final 46 times. Their only win in the competition came in 2017 with Salvador Sobral, performing his heart-wrenching song “Amar Pelos Dois”.
Portugal’s most recent participation was with NAPA with the song “Deslocado”. The band managed to qualify for the Grand Final and once there, they finished in 21st place. They received a total of 50 points, of which 37 points came from the jury and 13 points came the televote.
Who would you like to see represent Portugal in Vienna? As always, let us know what you think by commenting below. Also, be sure to follow ‘That Eurovision Site’ on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Threads and Bluesky for all things Eurovision 2026!
News Source: That Eurovision Site
Photo Credit: Samantha / That Eurovision Site