Sunday 27 May 2012

Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest


Sweden has participated at the Eurovision Song Contest 52 times since their debut in 1958. Sweden has not participated three times – 1964, 1970, and 1976.

Sweden is one of Eurovision's most successful countries, and also one where the contest is the most popular, having won the contest five times, as well as having reached the top 5 a total of 20 times. Sweden has also had 32 top-ten finishes, one of the best records in Eurovision. Sweden's first win was in 1974, when ABBA won with Waterloo. Three more wins followed, in 1984, 1991 and in 1999. The fifth time Sweden won in 2012 with Euphoria, performed by Loreen. Sweden has also hosted the contest four times, twice in the Swedish capital of Stockholm, as well as once in Gothenburg and Malmö.

Sweden was one of the first five countries to adopt televoting in 1997.

Since 1959, the Swedish representative has been chosen through an annual televised competition, known since 1967 as Melodifestivalen. Melodifestivalen is organised by Swedish public broadcasters Sveriges Television (SVT) and Sveriges Radio (SR). It determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Song Contest since 1959. It is one of Sweden's most popular television shows, and it has been estimated that more than 4 million Swedes watch the show annually.

Only one entry, Sweden's first entry in 1958, was not selected through Melodifestivalen, having been selected internally by the Swedish broadcaster at the time, Swedish Radio Service.

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