Now Eurovision 2026 is firmly behind us and we’ve had a chance to properly digest the wild ride of Vienna, it’s now time to discuss What Went Wrong. We’ve all had a chance to mull over the results of the contest. The Eurovision 2026 final saw some very dramatic results, but 10 acts did not get a chance to see that.
In our eleventh part Euan, Rory, and Tom discuss what went wrong with Latvia.
Who is Atvara?
“Atvara is the moniker of Liene Stūrmane, a 32-year-old singer-songwriter from the Latvian city of Liepāja. Liene was a talented singer as a child, and spent her formative years in music school studying jazz and pop singing. She first gained prominence in 2017 when she competed in Latvia’s version of The X Factor. However, it would not be until 2024 when she released her debut song, which went viral on TikTok. Since then, she has had a stellar career in her homeland, working with former Eurovision contestant Intars Busulis.
Her song for Eurovision 2026 – “”Ēnā”” – was written by Liene herself, as well as Jānis Jačmenkins.”
What are the issues with the selection?
Euan: Supernova has entered its golden age. The last two years has been absolutely gems. Yes, there has been some terrible songs that Rory has inexplicably liked (Ravin at the Taj Mahal), but the overall quality has been majestic. There’s a wealth of diversity and fun that other countries would love to have.
Rory: Ultimately, I think the national selection was rather good. The song selection was varied, there was a clear range of acts who could have – and did take part, and there was no specific over-reliance on one particular genre. The staging itself was strong and it’s clear that the Latvian public have enjoyed Supernova for years, offering lots of different options to pick the best act to go to Eurovision.
Tom: The Latvian Supernova team seem to be consistently improving the quality of the national final year on year. I’ll be intrigued to see how that translates to an arena show for the first time. This was not at all my personal winner of the 2026 Supernova, but “Enā” is a beautiful song and Atvara performed it perfectly in both Supernova and Eurovision.
Was the song and act good enough to be in Eurovision?
Euan: Absolutely was she a perfect fit for Eurovision. Probably one of the best vocalists of the year. She was my favourite in Supernova and my favourite in Eurovision itself so apologise for the yassery. The depth and emotion in her voice was unparalleled. It was good enough to be there. It’s just a shame that it didn’t connect with the rest of the continent.
Rory: Atvara is a standout singer and she definitely deserved any chance she could to go to Eurovision. Her bubbly personality was a joy to have in the Eurovision family, and I hope she will be recognised as such going forward. The song, in my opinion, however, was a little forgetful. This did rank low in my Supernova rankings for this year, and it was clear that I missed out on whatever hype it had until I saw it live in the studio in Riga. Could that have been a little too late? Possibly, but Atvara has great tracks – including this, I think this might have been an uphill battle from the start.
Tom: It was perfectly acceptable. Personally, I would have found Daba, Nolark or De Mantra, who competed in the national final this year, way more exciting on the Eurovision stage. But Atvara does sell this exceptionally in terms of vocal performance. She is an incredibly singer, and the music she has released since the Contest has been great. Looking back, I think it is perhaps justified that this missed out on the Grand Final in the context of the second semifinal in Vienna. But Atvara’s talent, and ability to convey emotion in her music, is undeniable.
Did the staging compliment the song and stand out?
Euan: The staging worked well to compliment the song. I felt going for the abstract nature worked well for the song, and complimented it perfectly. They didn’t overcomplicate it. It worked well to elevate Atvara and made the emotional connection with the viewer. It was elegant and perfect. (yassing over now)
Rory: In a way, I kind of have to say the staging complimented the song, as very little was changed between Supernova and Eurovision. However, I think Latvia’s chances were definitely hurt due to Malta. Not only were the pair drawn in the same semi-final, they were drawn in the same half of the same semi-final; one was always going to outshine the other. And while I definitely prefer Latvia’s song over Malta on any given day, “Bella” was more visually enticing compared to “Ēnā”, which caused it to get sucked up in the running order.
Tom: Yes… but I think different staging could have improved Atvara’s chance of qualifying. I was a little surprised that the package was an almost exact copy and paste of the Supernova staging. Atvara’s dress and the stage lighting were too dark for me. Unlike Luxembourg’s graphic overlays, I didn’t find Latvia’s distracting. Rather, it was quite beautiful. I just wish there was something more light about the staging. I also don’t think the message of the song – which is incredibly moving – came through to the casual viewer. I found myself explaining the meaning to some of the guests I watched the semifinal with, who were seeing it for the first time. Maybe that says more about them, than the staging. But I just wish it was more immediately evident, for non Latvian speakers, how personal and beautiful this song is.
Could this song have qualified if changes were made?
Euan: I completely disagree with the other two. I thought the staging worked best for the song. The song just didn’t click with the public. It doesn’t mean that the song was not good. It just didn’t work for the European public at that particular time. I don’t think there’s anything that Latvia couple have done to change that.
Rory: Definitely! The staging concept for Supernova was strong and it told the story, but when it comes to Eurovision, that’s another story. You need to elevate the staging to really make the song pop. Even small but powerful changes can make a world of difference – look at Tautumeitas, for example! It would still be a borderline, but it would have had more of a chance than we previously had.
Tom: Absolutely. I think it would have been tricky. And I’m not too sure what staging changes could have allowed this to qualify. But the song is really quite beautiful.
What are our outlooks for future contests?
Euan: I feel very optimistic for the outlook of Latvia. Yes, we are just coming out from an NQ, and there has only been the two qualifications, but the direction of travel Supernova has been on in the previous few years has been taking the contest back to somewhere innovative and that does have a lot of unique gems.
Rory: Supernova is continuing to give us Eurofans quality music that is playable, streamable and watchable. The linguistic revolution thanks to “Bur man laimi” has been a pleasure to see in Supernova, and I really hope that continues into 2027. The show is set to be massively expanded into the Xiaomi Arena next year, so we will have huge staging concepts to look forward to, but please maintain this radio-friendly but distinct identity, Latvia. That’s all I ask!
Tom: The upcoming changes to Supernova intrigue me. Having the final in front of a huge arena audience might change the outcome, and could give better insight to how someone would perform on the Eurovision stage. But I think Latvia are on a good, authentically Latvian track at the moment. Supernova is always a national final I am excited by.
Watch the accompanying discussion video here:
Latvia’s Eurovision Journey
Latvia made their Eurovision debut in 2000, finishing 3rd with “My Star” by Brainstorm. They have performed at every contest since and managed to win in 2002. Marie N sang “I Wanna,” scoring 176 points and bringing Eurovision to Riga in the process. Latvia also managed to finish in the top 10 two more times, in 2005 and 2015.
Latvia’s most recent entry on the Eurovision stage was Atvara, who performed “Ēnā”. Latvia failed qualified from the second semi-final, with Atvara earning a total of 49 points, finishing in 13th place. Of these, 28 points came from the jury, while the remaining 21 came from the televote.
What do think about our thoughts? Do you think Latvia could have qualified? Let us know in the comments or on social media! Be sure to follow ‘That Eurovision Site’ on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Threads and Bluesky as we prepare for Eurovision 2027!
Source: That Eurovision Site
Image Credit: Sarah Louise Bennett / EBU