Bulgaria’s selection for Eurovision 2026 kicked off tonight, with the results of the first show of Natsionalnata Selektsiya 2026.
Natsionalnata Selektsiya, Bulgaria’s selection for Eurovision 2026, started tonight, with 15 artists taking the stage to perform songs from their back catalogues. Due to a tie between Roksana and Innerglow each scoring 31 points, eight acts qualified for the artist final next weekend.
The show was aired on BNT 1 and was hosted by Boryana Gramatikova and Georgi Lyubenov, with Vladimira Ilieva joining them from backstage. The show also saw guest performances from Krisia, Kristian Kostov and Victoria. Kristian Kostov finished second for Bulgaria at Eurovision 2017 with “Beautiful Mess”, while Victoria was the last act to make it to a Eurovision final for Bulgaria in 2021.
The results of Night One were decided by a combination of public and jury vote. Five jury members have scored each performance between 1 and 5 points, while the public voted once on the BNT website for their favourite. The public’s favourite received 15 points, and the least favourite received 1 point. The maximum score available at this stage was 40 points. The jury members for the show were:
- Toni Dimitrova – Singer
- Milen Mitev – Director General of BNR
- Vasil Petrov – Singer
- PetĹr Dundakov – Composer
- Rushi – Singer and actor
The results of tonight’s show are:
Natsionalnata Selektsiya 2026
Natsionalnata Selektsiya 2026 will consist of three live shows, all broadcast on BNT 1. The first two shows will be used to select the artist, while the final will determine the song that will represent Bulgaria at the Eurovision Song Contest 2026.
In the second show, the top seven artists will perform again, once more presenting songs from their existing repertoires. In the third and final show, the selected artist will perform three original songs created specifically for Eurovision. In all three shows, both the jury and the public will be able to vote.
At the Eurovision Song Contest 2017, 17-year-old Kristian Kostov finished in second place in the Grand Final. Bulgaria has qualified for the Grand Final five times out of thirteen attempts at the contest. Bulgaria debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in Kyiv, Ukraine in 2005. The country competed annually from 2005 to 2013, before withdrawing for two years due to financial issues. Since returning to the contest in 2016, Bulgaria qualified for the final in every contest they have competed in up until the 2022 contest.