EUROVISION 2026 - PORTUGAL: BANDIDOS DO CANTE WINS FESTIVAL DA CANCAO

Portugal's 60th Festival da Canção came to an end tonight and the winner is Bandidos do Cante.

Portugal's national selection for Eurovision song contest 2026 has been quite critical to the participation with most artists and/or songwriters declaring they won't go to Vienna should they win. In the end there are apparently only two artists who have declared they will go to Vienna, and one uncertain if they win. Let's see who eventually will go to Eurovision in the end.... Apparently Bandidos do Cante is one of those who have said yes. Read more here.

Bandidos de Cante was formed almost by accident by childhood friends singing Alentejo folk songs at dinner parties and such. The quintet is composed of Miguel Costa, Duarte Farias, Francisco Raposo, Luís Aleixo and Francisco Pestana, all natives of the municipality of Beja, except for Francisco Pestana, who is from Monte Trigo. After tone of those dinner gatherings they were invited to record vocals to D.A.M.A.'s Casa in late 2022. The rest is history. One album and half a dozen singles later they are off to Vienna.

The process of selecting the winner was the same we have already get used to: RTP selected 16 composers who got free hands to create the song and find a performer for it and six songs were picked up from the 660 open submissions. One was selected by last year's winner Napa (Nunca Mates o mandarim) and one from the Prova de acesso (Dinis Mota) .

Two semi-finals with 50/50 televote/jury chose four entries for the final, and the rest faced televote for the fifth slot in the final.

Final (jury + tele)

Bandidos do Cante - Rosa (10 + 12) 22 1st

João Ribeiro - Canção do querer (12 + 2) 14 4th

André Amaro - Dá-me a tua mão (1 + 7( 8 7th

Gonçalo Gomes - Doce ilusão (4 + 3) 7 9th

Marquise - Chuva (3 + 5) 8 8th

Evaya - Sprint (2 + 1) 3 10th

Sandrino - Disposto a tudo (7 + 6) 13 5th

Nunca Mates o Mandarim - Fumo (8 + 8) 16 3rd

Silvana Peres - Não tem fim, (5 + 4) 9 6th

Dinis Mota - Jurei (6 + 10) 16 2nd

Comments

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Life after Helsinki 2007 Eurovision

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