List of LGBTQ participants in the Eurovision Song Contest
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The following list includes those participants in the Eurovision Song Contest who are known to be members of the LGBTQ community.
Artists
As of the 2025 contest, LGBTQ participants have won 12 times, including six out of the last eight contests held.
| Table key: | First place | Second place | Third place |
Artists with multiple appearances
Six of the LGBT artists listed above have competed in the Eurovision Song Contest at least twice:
Belgium: Bob Benny, 1959[b] and 1961[b]
Luxembourg: Jean-Claude Pascal,[c] 1961 and 1981 (won the first time)
Iceland: Sigga Beinteins, 1990, 1992 and 1994
Israel: Dana International, 1998 and 2011 (won the first time)
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Deen, 2004 and 2016
Sweden: Loreen, 2012[b] and 2023 (won both times)
Summaries
As of the 2026 contest:
- Of the 50 countries that have competed in the contest,[af] 34 have been represented by LGBT artists at least once, 29 of which have been represented by LGBT artists more than once.
- Of the 16 countries that have competed in the contest but have never been represented by LGBT artists, five have not been active for over a decade (Andorra, Monaco, Morocco, Slovakia, and Turkey). A sixth country, Belarus, is currently ineligible to participate.
- Of the 29 countries that have been represented by LGBT artists more than once, Bosnia and Herzegovina is the only country that was represented by only a single LGBTQ artist, who represented the country more than once.
| Country | Number of years represented by LGBT artists |
Years represented by LGBT artists | Number of unique LGBT artists representing the country |
|---|---|---|---|
 Australia |
3 | 2021, 2022, 2024 | 4 (two different artists shared in the representation for the country in 2024) |
 Austria |
2 | 2014, 2025 | 2 |
 Belgium |
6 | 1959, 1961, 2014, 2023, 2024, 2025 | 5 (same artist represented Belgium in 1959 and 1961) |
 Bosnia and Herzegovina |
2 | 2004, 2016 | 1 (same artist represented Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2004 and 2016) |
 Bulgaria |
1 | 2018 | 1 |
 Croatia |
2 | 2016, 2025 | 2 |
 Czech Republic |
2 | 2024, 2025 | 2 |
 Denmark |
4 | 2004, 2016, 2024, 2026 | 4 |
 Finland |
3 | 2004, 2018, 2025 | 3 |
 France |
3 | 1956, 2004, 2019 | 3 |
 Germany |
4 | 2008, 2009, 2016, 2021 | 4 |
 Greece |
1 | 2026 | 1 |
 Iceland |
6 | 1990, 1992, 1994, 1997, 2008, 2022 | 4 (same artist represented Iceland in 1990, 1992 and 1994) |
 Ireland |
5 | 2005, 2006, 2013, 2021, 2024 | 5 |
 Israel |
7 | 1998, 2002, 2010, 2011, 2016, 2017, 2022 | 6 (same artist represented Israel in 1998 and 2011) |
 Italy |
2 | 2021, 2024 | 3 (two different artists shared in the representation for the country in 2021) |
 Lithuania |
2 | 2024, 2026 | 2 |
 Luxembourg |
3 | 1961, 1976, 1981 | 2 (same artist represented Luxembourg in 1961 and 1981) |
 Malta |
3 | 2011, 2015, 2025 | 3 |
 Montenegro |
1 | 2017 | 1 |
 Netherlands |
7 | 1968, 1988, 2001, 2009, 2016, 2019, 2021 | 7 |
 North Macedonia |
1 | 2021 | 1 |
 Norway |
5 | 2004, 2012, 2019, 2023, 2025 | 5 |
 Poland |
2 | 2001, 2016 | 2 |
 Portugal |
4 | 1992, 1994, 2017, 2024 | 4 |
 Romania |
2 | 2021, 2022 | 2 |
 Russia |
2 | 2003, 2007 | 3 (two different artists shared in the representation for the country in 2007) |
 San Marino |
2 | 2024, 2026 | 3 (two different artists shared in the representation for the country in 2024) |
 Serbia |
2 | 2007, 2023 | 2 |
 Spain |
3 | 2007, 2021, 2022 | 3 |
 Sweden |
7 | 1992, 1997, 2001, 2007, 2012, 2021, 2023 | 6 (same artist represented Sweden in 2012 and 2023) |
 Switzerland |
5 | 1973, 2006, 2010, 2016, 2024 | 5 |
 Ukraine |
1 | 2018 | 1 |
 United Kingdom |
5 | 1965, 1997, 2007, 2011, 2024 | 6 (two different artists shared in the representation for the country in 2011) |
- Of the 70 editions of the contest that have been held, 39 had at least one entry performed by an LGBTQ artist, 24 of which had more than one entry performed by LGBT artists.
- Every contest held in the 21st century has featured at least one LGBTQ artist.
- The 2024 contest featured 11 entries with LGBT artists (13 LGBT artists altogether), the most of any edition.
Presenters
| Presenter | Host country | Year | Sexual orientation or gender identity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yigal Ravid | Israel |
1999 | Gay[116] |
| Assi Azar | Israel |
2019 | Gay[117] |
| Nikkie de Jager | Netherlands |
2021 | Trans woman[118] |
| Mika | Italy |
2022 | Gay[119][120] |
| Graham Norton[ag] | United Kingdom |
2023 (final only) | Gay[121][122] |
See also
- LGBTQ visibility in the Eurovision Song Contest
- Drag performances in the Eurovision Song Contest:
- Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest 1986[ah][123]
- Slovenia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2002
- Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007
- Ukraine in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007
- Austria in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014[ai]
- Australia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2024[ai]
- Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest 2024[ah]
Notes
- The 1956 contest had secret voting and, apart from the winner, no results were released.
- Came out subsequent to the Eurovision performance
- Never publicly came out during his lifetime
- Performed as part of the band Heart 2 Heart
- Performed as part of the band Blond
- Performed as part of the band Katrina and the Waves
- Performed as part of the duo Donna and Joe
- Performed as part of the band Eurobandið
- Performed as part of the band De Toppers
- Thomas Neuwirth, the person behind the drag persona Conchita Wurst, is openly gay
- Performed with Dalal and feat. Ana Rucner and Jala
- Performed as part of the band Lighthouse X
- Open during the contest
- Performed under the stage name Wrs
- Performed as part of the band Electric Fields
- Excluding Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro, countries that no longer exist and were not represented by LGBT artists during their existence
- Performance featured dancers in drag
- Listed in this article since the performer is also LGBT