As we gear up for Saturday's Grand Final of the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest, we preview the favourites and our best bets ahead of the weekend's musical showcase. This is the 70th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest and will take place at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna, Austria, following the country's victory at the 2025 contest with the operatic ballad "Wasted Love" by Austrian singer JJ.
Austria last hosted the contest back in 1956 alongside the inaugural edition — though as any Eurovision veteran knows, winning the contest is a thrill, while hosting it is a significant financial undertaking.
Grand Final Info
Eurovision 2026 Grand Final Info
Date: 16th May 2026
Time: 9 pm CEST (8 pm BST)
Venue: Wiener Stadthalle, Vienna, Austria
Hosts: Victoria Swarovski, Michael Ostrowski, Emily Busvine (Green Room)
Slogan: United By Music (70th Anniversary Edition)
Channel: BBC One
Running Order
Running Order
01. Denmark | Søren Torpegaard Lund – Før Vi Går Hjem
02. Germany | Sarah Engels – Fire
03. Israel | Noam Bettan – Michelle
04. Belgium | ESSYLA – Dancing on the Ice
05. Albania | Alis – Nân
06. Greece | Akylas – Ferto
07. Ukraine | LELÉKA – Ridnym
08. Australia | Delta Goodrem – Eclipse
09. Serbia | LAVINA – Kraj Mene
10. Malta | AIDAN – Bella
11. Czechia | Daniel Zizka – CROSSROADS
12. Bulgaria | DARA – Bangaranga
13. Croatia | LELEK – Andromeda
14. United Kingdom | LOOK MUM NO COMPUTER – Eins, Zwei, Drei
15. France | Monroe – Regarde!
16. Moldova | Satoshi – Viva, Moldova!
17. Finland | Linda Lampenius x Pete Parkkonen – Liekinheitin
18. Poland | ALICJA – Pray
19. Lithuania | Lion Ceccah – Sólo Quiero Más
20. Sweden | FELICIA – My System
21. Cyprus | Antigoni – JALLA
22. Italy | Sal Da Vinci – Per Sempre Sì
23. Norway | JONAS LOVV – YA YA YA
24. Romania | Alexandra Căpitănescu – Choke Me
25. Austria | COSMÓ – Tanzschein
Favourites
Eurovision 2026 Grand Final Favourites
Finland
Finland @ 4/5
Finland are the red-hot favourite for Eurovision 2026 with BOYLE Sports odds of 4/5, implying roughly a 45% chance of success.
Finland has participated in Eurovision since 1961 and had to wait 44 years for their first victory, which came in 2006 when Lordi won with Hard Rock Hallelujah . Their most celebrated recent performance was in 2023 when Käärijä came second overall with Cha Cha Cha , winning the public vote by a significant margin, a benchmark that gives real context to this year's strong position.
This year, Finland sends Linda Lampenius and Pete Parkkonen with Liekinheitin (meaning Flamethrower), a high-energy violin-pop-rock fusion that has dominated the betting market since it was revealed. The official performance video has surpassed 7 million views on the official Eurovision channel, and their first semi-final performance was one of the most talked-about moments of the week in Vienna.
The key to Finnish success will be the Tele Vote, where they are the clear market leader, while Australia 's Delta Goodrem leads the Jury Vote market. Finland 's unique strength is that they score near the top of both sub-markets, making them very hard to oppose going into Saturday night.
Australia
Australia @ 7/2
Second in the betting is Australia , represented by global pop star Delta Goodrem with the song Eclipse , a polished and emotionally charged ballad that has taken Eurovision week by storm and surged into the top three of the betting market following her stunning semi-final performance on Thursday night.
Australia has participated in Eurovision since 2015, with their best result being second place in 2016 when Dami Im's Sound of Silence came agonisingly close to victory. Eclipse features crystalline vocals and an elaborate staging concept including 7,000 Swarovski crystals, and has been widely praised as one of the most visually spectacular packages of the entire contest. Delta Goodrem's gown was even designed by Greek-Australian designers Nicky Apostolopoulos and Emmanuel Tsakiris , adding another layer of colour to her Vienna story.
Australia is the clear favourite to win the Jury Vote at 5/1 with BOYLE Sports to win the contest outright, and while their Tele Vote prospects are more limited, the jury alone could carry them a very long way on Saturday night. If the public responds to the sheer spectacle of Eclipse as warmly as the delegations have during rehearsals, Delta Goodrem could become the most unlikely and most celebrated Eurovision winner in the contest's 70-year history.
Denmark
Israel@ 9/1
Third in the betting is Israel , represented by Noam Bettan with the song Michelle , a multilingual pop entry that has generated enormous controversy but equally enormous support heading into Saturday night.
Israel has participated in Eurovision since 1973 and has won the contest on four occasions, in 1978 , 1979 , 1998 and most recently in 2018 when Netta's Toy triumphed in Lisbon . This year's contest has been overshadowed by the ongoing conflict in Gaza , with five countries, Ireland , Spain , Iceland , the Netherlands and Slovenia , boycotting in protest at Israel's inclusion. Despite that, Noam Bettan qualified safely from Semi-Final 1 and arrives in Saturday's Grand Final with a significant and well-organised voting base behind him.
Michelle is considered the clear favourite to win the Tele Vote, with bookmakers pricing Israel as the most likely public vote winner ahead of Finland and Greece . However, their overall winning chances are tempered by what is expected to be a more modest jury performance. At their current odds with BOYLE Sports , Israel represents a fascinating and volatile market, one where the result on Saturday night could be shaped as much by politics as by the quality of the performance itself.
Best Bets
Eurovision 2026 Grand Final Best Bets
Finland to Win the Tele Vote
Finland to Win the Tele Vote @ 8/11
Our headline best bet is Finland to win the Tele Vote at BOYLE Sports .
Linda Lampenius and Pete Parkkonen's Liekinheitin has been the runaway public favourite throughout Eurovision week in Vienna. The official performance video has surpassed 7 million views on the official Eurovision channel, their Semi-Final 1 performance was one of the most talked-about moments of the week, and they are the clear market leader in every Tele Vote sub-market across bookmakers.
The public love a spectacle, and Liekinheitin delivers exactly that. High energy, a virtuoso violin performance and a staging concept that translates powerfully on screen. Finland winning the Tele Vote is the most likely single outcome of Saturday night.
Australia to Win the Jury Vote
Australia to Win the Jury Vote @ 10/11
Our second best bet is Australia to win the Jury Vote with Delta Goodrem 's Eclipse .
Australia has been participating in Eurovision since 2015, with their best result being second place in 2016 when Dami Im 's Sound of Silence came agonisingly close to victory. Delta Goodrem is one of Australia 's biggest pop stars, and Eclipse is a polished, emotionally charged ballad with crystalline vocals and an elaborate staging concept including 7,000 Swarovski crystals, the textbook jury-friendly package.
Australia leads the Jury Vote market across bookmakers, ahead of France , Finland and Denmark . The gap between Goodrem 's jury credentials and her Tele Vote prospects reflects a classic split-vote dynamic that Eurovision produces almost every year. For those looking at the dedicated Jury Vote market with BOYLE Sports, Australia is the standout pick.
Australia to Win the Jury Vote @ 10/11
Romania Each-Way
Romania Each-Way @ 12/1
Our outside bet is Romania each-way at 12/1 with BOYLE Sports .
Alexandra Căpitănescu performs in position 24 with Choke Me , one of the strongest draw positions in the entire running order. Late slots benefit from peak viewer engagement and recency bias in the Tele Vote, and Romania has a long history of polling strongly with the public on big Eurovision nights. Căpitănescu was one of the standout performers of Semi-Final 2, and the song's bold, dramatic energy has generated significant buzz in Vienna this week. At 12/1 each-way with BOYLE Sports , a Top 3 finish offers outstanding value for one of the most watchable acts in the final.
*Prices are subject to fluctuation.
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Bill is as passionate about Irish football as they come, with an agonising longing to see his country grace a World Cup stage. A League of Ireland devotee and lifelong Man United fan, he knows better than most what sporting heartbreak feels like, and brings that perspective to the BOYLE Sports Blog. With roots in greyhound racing and a curiosity spanning politics, snooker, WWE and beyond, there is rarely a sporting conversation he cannot add to.
