Scandal at Eurovision 2026: Bulgaria snatched a historic victory, leaving Israel with “silver” one step away from disqualification

The 70th anniversary Eurovision Song Contest 2026 has ended in Vienna , which is already being called the most dramatic and politicized in the history of the project, writes xrust. The main sensation of the year is the absolute victory of Bulgaria, which European bookmakers did not even include in the top 5 favorites on the eve of the final. The crystal microphone is taken away by the pop diva DARA (Darina Yotova) with a powerful dance track «Bangaranga» . Meanwhile, Israel takes second place for the second year in a row , having arranged an incredible validating final together with the winner.

How an outsider turned the game: the triumph of Bulgaria

Bulgarian pop star DARA literally blew up the stage of the Wiener Stadthalle arena. Critics have already dubbed her performance with the track “Bangaranga” a “mixture of exorcism and rave,” but it was this crazy drive that captivated Europe. Bulgaria showed a phenomenal result, scoring a total of 516 points .

The uniqueness of this triumph is that the singer was able to simultaneously take first place both according to the decision of the professional jury (204 points) and according to the results of the audience vote (312 points). Such unanimity has not been seen at the competition for almost ten years — since the triumph of Salvador Sobral in 2017. For Bulgaria, whose best achievement until that moment was Christian Kostov’s silver in the same 2017, this victory was the first and absolutely historical.

Israel in second place: music despite the boycott

The main nerve of the evening was the performance of the Israeli artist Noam Bettan with the lyrical composition «Michelle» . Due to the aggravation of the geopolitical situation, the country's participation in the competition was accompanied by unprecedented pressure. The streets of Vienna were filled with thousands of rallies, activists demanded a strict boycott, and the Austrian police had to make a series of arrests right before the start of the show.

Organizers from the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) even had to urgently modernize the vote counting system to eliminate cheating. Professional national juries demonstratively condemned the Israeli, leaving him only in 8th place. However, viewers at the screens staged a large-scale protest vote: after the announcement of the people's scores, Noam Bettan with 343 points soared to the first line of the tournament table and held it until the very last seconds, until the organizers announced the cosmic scores of Bulgaria.

Failure of favorites and anniversary surprises

While Bulgaria and Israel shared the crown, the bookmakers' main favorites suffered a fiasco. The controversial Finnish duet of pop artist Pete Parkkonen and cult violinist Linda Lampenius with the fiery track «Liekinheitin» took only sixth place. Rounding out the top five were Romania, Australia led by superstar Delta Goodrem and nostalgic disco from Italy. The show for the UK turned out to be a complete fiasco — the eccentric project Look Mum No Computer took a shameful last place, receiving only one point from the jury and an absolute zero from the audience.

Since the 2026 competition was the 70th in a row, the organizers diluted the political tension with a bright tribute. The audience was entertained by legendary winners from previous years: Finnish rockers Lordi presented a heavy metal version of the classic pop hit «Save Your Kisses For Me», proving that the spirit of the old Eurovision is still alive.

Russian viewers, despite the absence of an official broadcast and the non-participation of the Russian Federation, are actively discussing the results of the final on social networks. Domestic fans note that the competition has finally turned into an arena for political manifestos, but Bulgaria’s victory is considered deserved — high-quality and unhackneyed ethno-pop with a sonorous Slavic flavor turned out to be stronger than behind-the-scenes intrigues. The next Eurovision Song Contest 2027, according to the rules, should be held in the homeland of the winner — in sunny Sofia.

Based on materials from https://www.reuters.com

Xrust Scandal at Eurovision 2026: Bulgaria snatched a historic victory, leaving Israel with “silver” one step away from disqualification