Last week, I covered the 10 least successful countries in Eurovision history. This next group may not be at the very bottom, but their track records still aren’t all that great. Here are numbers 40 through 31 in the ranking of the most successful countries in Eurovision history!
40. Poland
Poland has competed in Eurovision 26 times since their debut in 1994. They breached the Top 3 in their very first year of competing, coming in 2nd place; however, this is their only Top 3 placement to date, and they have only placed in the Top 10 twice since then (7th in 2003 and 8th in 2016). After the introduction of the Semi Finals in 2004, they have only qualified for the Grand Final eight times, giving them a qualification rate of just 44%. The average of all their final results is about 21.
Justyna Steczkowska will represent Poland with the song “GAJA” in May.
39. Lithuania
Lithuania is the only Baltic country that is yet to have won Eurovision. Ironically, their best result to date was in 2006 with a song called “We Are The Winners (of Eurovision),” which came in 6th place in the Grand Final. They also placed in the Top 10 in 2016 and 2021, but have never breached the Top 3; however, this may not have been the case if the 2020 contest hadn’t been canceled due the COVID-19 pandemic, because they were one of the favorites to win that year with “On Fire” by The Roop. They have participated in Eurovision a total of 24 times since 1994 and have qualified for the Grand Final 13 out of 20 times (65%). The average of all their final results is about 21.
Katarsis will represent Lithuania with the song “Tavo Akys” in May.
38. Bulgaria
Out of the three times Bulgaria has made it to the Top 10 in the Grand Final, all of their results were actually in the Top 5: they came in 5th in 2007, 4th in 2016, and 2nd in 2017. Despite these impressive placements, Bulgaria has only qualified for the Grand Final a mere five times out of 14 participations (36%). Bookmakers had predicted that Bulgaria would bring home their first win back in 2020 with “Tears Getting Sober” by VICTORIA, but unfortunately this contest was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even though the odds are rarely 100% accurate, predicted winners always at least end up in the Top 10, so if the contest hadn’t been canceled that year Bulgaria could have achieved their fourth Top 10 placement. The average of all their final results is about 23.
Bulgaria has not participated in the contest since 2022, and it is unknown if or when they will return.
37. Hungary
Hungary has competed in Eurovision 17 times. Like Poland, their best result to date was the year they debuted at the contest: they came in 4th place in 1994. Although they never made it to the Top 3, Hungary did achieve five Top 10 placements. Of the 10 times that they qualified for the Grand Final, however, there were four times where they ultimately placed in the Bottom 5. The average of all their final results is a little over 18.
Hungary has not participated in the contest since 2019 and it seems they are unlikely to ever return.
36. Croatia
Croatia joined the Eurovision family in 1993, though they were absent in 2014 and 2015. They finally achieved their first Top 3 placement last year with “Rim Tim Tagi Dim” by Baby Lasagna, which was the predicted winner according to bookmakers but ended up placing 2nd overall. This was their first time placing in the Top 10 since 2001; between 1995 and 2001, they had earned six Top 10 placements. They have only qualified for the Grand Final exactly half of the time. The average of all their final results is about 18.
Marko Bošnjak will represent Croatia with the song “Poison Cake” in May.
35. Latvia
Latvia started off strong when they first started competing in Eurovision: they came in 3rd place their very first year in 2000, and by as early as 2003 they had already brought home a victory with “I Wanna” by Marie N. However, the introduction of the Semi Finals in 2004 seemed to put an end to Latvia’s successes. Out of 20 contests, Latvia has only qualified for the Grand Final seven times, which is a mere 35% qualification rate. They finally qualified for the Grand Final again last year after six NQs in a row. The average of all their final results is a little less than 25.
Tautumeitas will represent Latvia with the song “Bur man laimi” in May.
34. Moldova
Remember the Epic Sax Guy meme? That was actually Moldova’s Eurovision entry in 2010! Moldova started competing in Eurovision the year after Semi Finals were introduced, and they have qualified for the Grand Final 13 out of 19 times (68%). These qualifications resulted in five Top 10 placements, including 3rd place with Epic Sax Guy- I mean, Sunstroke Project in 2017. The average of all their final results is a little less than 19.
Moldova was slated to compete in Basel this year, but they unexpectedly canceled their national selection and withdrew from the contest.
33. Iceland
Despite being one of the five smallest countries to ever compete in Eurovision, Iceland has a fairly impressive seven Top 10 placements under their belt, two of which were also Top 3. They were also one of the favorites to win the 2020 contest with Daði og Gagnamagnið’s viral song “Think About Things” and most likely would have earned yet another Top 10 placement if the contest hadn’t been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, they have qualified in just about half of the Semi Finals they’ve competed in, making it to the Grand Final 11 out of 20 times. The average of all their final results is a little less than 19.
VÆB will represent Iceland with the song “RÓA” in May.
32. Portugal
Even though Portugal has participated in Eurovision since 1964, it wasn’t until 2017 that they brought home their first victory with the intimate ballad “Amar Pelos Dois” by Salvador Sobral. To this day this has been their first and only Top 3 placement; however, they have earned 11 Top 10 placements in addition to their win in 2017. Out of the 18 Semi Finals they’ve competed in, Portugal only qualified for eight of them, which is just 44% of the time. They have participated in Eurovision 55 times and the average of all their final results is about 17.
NAPA will represent Portugal with the song “Deslocado” in May.
31. Cyprus
Cyprus holds the undesirable record for most participations without any victories. After participating in Eurovision for 35 years, they almost claimed their first win in 2018 with “Fuego” by Eleni Foureira, but ended up coming in 2nd place. This was their first (and so far, only) Top 3 placement, although they had achieved nine Top 10 placements prior to 2018. They have qualified for the Grand Final 13 out of 20 times (65%) and the average of all their final results is a little less than 17.
Theo Evan will represent Cyprus with the song “Shh” in May.
