RTP, the Portuguese national broadcaster, has revealed the semi-final split for Festival da Canção 2026.
A draw was held in RTP headquarters in Lisbon to allocate the 16 composers of Festival da Canção 2026. At the request of the composers, Bandidos do Cante and Cristina Branco were allocated to the second semi-final to avoid schedule clashes.
The semi-final draw is as follows:
Semi-Final One – February 21
- AGRIDOCE
- Evaya
- Marquise
- Djodje
- Dinis Mota
- Bateu Matou
- André Amaro
- Nunca Mates o Mandarim
Semi-Final Two – February 28
- Bandidos do Cante
- Cristina Branco
- Inês Sousa
- Sandrino
- Jacaréu
- Francisco Fontes
- Gonçalo Gomes
- Rita Dias
You can watch the draw here.
To date, 13 of 16 acts in Festival da Canção 2026 have stated that they will not participate in Eurovision 2026 if they win the selection. Bandido do Cante is the only act so far to publicly confirm that they will go to Eurovision if selected. André Amaro and Sandrino have not made any public statements on this matter.
Festival da Canção 2026 will consist of two semi-finals on February 21 and February 28 and a final on March 7.
NAPA represented Portugal at the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 with the song “Deslocado”. They finished in 21st place with 50 points.
Image source: RTP | Source: RTP
Portugal debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1964 represented by António Calvário. The country finished last, scoring nul points. Before 2017, Portugal’s best result was 6th place, which came in 1996 when Lúcia Moniz performed “O meu coração não tem cor” in Oslo. In 2017, Salvador Sobral took home the crystal microphone with his song “Amar pelos dois”, ending a 53-year wait for a Portuguese win. The 2018 contest was held in the Portuguese capital of Lisbon for the first time.
