Ukraine In The Eurovision Song Contest

Ukraine has won the contest three times: in 2004 with "Wild Dances" by Ruslana, in 2016 with "1944" by Jamala, and in 2022 with "Stefania" by Kalush Orchestra, thus becoming the first country in the 21st century and the first Eastern European country to win the contest three times. Ukraine hosted the 2005 and 2017 contests in Kyiv.

Ukraine in the Eurovision Song Contest
Participating broadcaster	Suspilne
Participation summary
Appearances	18 (18 finals)
First appearance	2003
Highest placement	1st: 2004, 2016, 2022
Host	2005, 2017
Participation history 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Related articles
Vidbir
External links
UA:PBC website
Ukraine's page at Eurovision.tv
For the most recent participation see Ukraine in the Eurovision Song Contest 2024

Since the introduction of the semi-final round in 2004, Ukraine is the only country outside of the "Big Five" to have qualified for the final of every contest they have competed in, and has been placed outside the top-ten only six times. Ukraine has a total of eight top-five placements, with Verka Serduchka (2007) and Ani Lorak (2008) both finishing second, Zlata Ognevich third (2013), Mika Newton fourth (2011) and Go_A fifth (2021), in addition to its wins. The only countries with more top-five results in the 21st century are Sweden (13) and Russia (10).

Ukraine made its debut in 2003, when Oleksandr Ponomariov finished in 14th place with the song "Hasta la vista".

Ukraine won the contest at the second attempt in 2004, when Ruslana won with the song "Wild Dances", defeating second-placed Serbia and Montenegro by 17 points, 280 to 263. Later in the year, she supported the Orange Revolution and became an MP for one year as part of the new president's alliance.

In 2016, Ukraine became the first Eastern European country to win the contest twice, when Jamala won with her song "1944". The televote was won by Russia and the jury vote by Australia; Ukraine was second in both, but won with an overall total of 534 points, with Australia second with 511 points and Russia third with 491 points. In 2017, Ukraine was pre-qualified for the final as hosts, however they achieved their worst result to date – 24th place with 36 points.

Ukraine was absent twice from the contest, in 2015 and 2019, for reasons related to the ongoing conflict with Russia:

• Ukrainian broadcaster NTU sat out the 2015 contest because of financial difficulties in relation to the war in Donbas. However, Ukraine broadcast the contest despite not taking part. NTU pledged to bring Ukraine back to the contest for 2016, which was finalized and announced on 16 September 2015.
• Vidbir, the Ukrainian national selection for the 2019 contest, was won by Maruv with "Siren Song". However, the Ukrainian broadcaster UA:PBC required any potential representative in the contest to sign a contract which would forbid them from performing in Russia. The winner Maruv, as well as runners-up Freedom Jazz, Kazka and Brunettes Shoot Blondes, all refused to sign the contract, leading to Ukraine's withdrawal from the contest on 27 February.

In 2020, Go_A won the national selection Vidbir and was set to represent Ukraine with the song "Solovey", before the contest was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They were instead internally selected to represent the country the following year with the song "Shum", with which they finished in fifth place. After the contest, "Shum" entered the Billboard Global 200 at position 158, becoming the first ever Ukrainian-language song to chart there. Ukraine won the contest for a third time in 2022, with the song "Stefania" performed by Kalush Orchestra. "Stefania" later went on to surpass the peak of "Shum" on the Billboard Global 200, charting at position 85.

Since the introduction of the semi-final round in 2004, Ukraine is the only country to have qualified for the final of every Eurovision they have competed in (they were absent from the 2015 and 2019 contests). Ukraine has a total of 12 top-ten placements (among those are eight top-five placements). Ukraine's participation and success in the contest has been acknowledged as a factor in the country's growing soft power and international image. This view is shared by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who has supported the country's continued participation in the event following the Russian invasion as a way to promote the Ukrainian national cause internationally.

The following lists Ukraine's entries in the Eurovision Song Contest along with their result.

Following its victory in 2022, Ukraine was initially given the opportunity to host the 2023 contest, however, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) later decided that the country would not be able to host due to security concerns caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, making Ukraine the first country since Israel in 1979 to win the contest but not host it the following year. The 2022 runner-up, the United Kingdom, hosted the 2023 contest on Ukraine's behalf, and Ukraine was granted automatic qualification for the final.

Marcel Bezençon Awards

Year	Category	Song	Performer	Final	Points	Host city	Ref.
2004	Artistic Award	"Wild Dances"	Ruslana	1	280	Istanbul
2007	Press Award	"Dancing Lasha Tumbai"	Verka Serduchka	2	235	Helsinki
2008	Artistic Award	"Shady Lady"	Ani Lorak	2	230	Belgrade
2016	Artistic Award	"1944"	Jamala	1	534	Stockholm

Barbara Dex Award

Year	Performer	Host city	Ref.
2007	Verka Serduchka	Helsinki

Heads of delegation

Jury members

A five-member jury panel consisting of music industry professionals is made up for every participating country for the semi-finals and final of the Eurovision Song Contest, ranking all entries except for their own country's contribution. The juries' votes constitute 50% of the overall result alongside televoting.

Commentators and spokespersons

•  
  Ruslana performing "Wild Dances" in Istanbul (2004)
•  
  Tina Karol performing "Show Me Your Love" in Athens (2006)
•  
  Verka Serduchka performing "Dancing Lasha Tumbai" in Helsinki (2007)
•  
  Ani Lorak performing "Shady Lady" in Belgrade (2008)
•  
  Svetlana Loboda performing "Be My Valentine! (Anti-Crisis Girl)" in Moscow (2009)
•  
  Alyosha performing "Sweet People" in Oslo (2010)
•  
  Zlata Ognevich performing "Gravity" in Malmö (2013)
•  
  Maria Yaremchuk performing "Tick-Tock" in Copenhagen (2014)
•  
  Jamala performing "1944" in Stockholm (2016)
•  
  O.Torvald performing "Time" in Kyiv (2017)
•  
  Mélovin performing "Under the Ladder" in Lisbon (2018)
•  
  Go_A performing "Shum" in Rotterdam (2021)
•  
  Kalush Orchestra performing "Stefania" in Turin (2022)
•  
  Tvorchi performing "Heart of Steel" in Liverpool (2023)

• Ukraine in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest
• Russia–Ukraine relations in the Eurovision Song Contest

Notes