Switzerland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026
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Switzerland was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 with the song "Alice", written by Charlie McClean and Veronica Fusaro, and performed by Fusaro herself. The Swiss participating broadcaster, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR), internally selected its entry for the contest.
Switzerland- Artist: 20 January 2026
- Song: 11 March 2026
| Switzerland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eurovision Song Contest 2026 | ||||
| Participating broadcaster | Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR) | |||
| Country | Switzerland | |||
| Selection process | Internal selection | |||
| Announcement date |
| |||
| Competing entry | ||||
| Song | "Alice" | |||
| Artist | Veronica Fusaro | |||
| Songwriters |
| |||
| Placement | ||||
| Semi-final result | Failed to qualify | |||
| Participation chronology | ||||
| ||||
Background
Prior to the 2026 contest, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR) had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest representing Switzerland sixty-five times since its first entry at the inaugural contest in 1956.[1] It won that first edition of the contest with the song "Refrain" performed by Lys Assia. Its second victory was achieved in 1988 with "Ne partez pas sans moi" performed by Canadian singer Céline Dion. Switzerland won the contest for the third time in 2024, with "The Code" performed by Nemo. Since the introduction of semi-finals to the format of the contest in 2004, Switzerland has thus far managed to qualify to the final on ten occasions, five of them being all the contests it participated in since 2019, which included three top five results. As hosts in 2025, Switzerland placed 10th with "Voyage" performed by Zoë Më.[1]
As part of its duties as participating broadcaster, SRG SSR organises the selection of its entry in the Eurovision Song Contest and broadcasts the event in the country. The broadcaster had opted for both national finals and internal selections to select its entries throughout the years, sticking to the internal selection method since 2019. SRG SSR confirmed its intention to participate at the 2026 contest on 2 June 2025,[2] later announcing that it would again use an internal selection to determine its entry.[3]
Before Eurovision
Internal selection
Between 10 and 12 June 2025, the annual SUISA songwriting camp took place in Maur, Zurich; the songs composed in the event are usually submitted to SRG SSR as potential Eurovision entries.[4]
SRG SSR opened a submission period between 4 and 25 August 2025 for interested artists and composers to submit their entries. Artists and songwriters of any nationality were able to submit songs, with priority given to Swiss nationals or residents.[3] At the closing of the window, 493 entries had been submitted.[5] Submissions were assessed in various rounds by a Swiss public panel, an international public panel, and a 25-member international expert jury; the public panels consisted of Swiss and international audience members, while the international jury consisted of former national jurors for their respective countries at the Eurovision Song Contest.[3] The announcement of the artist took place on 20 January 2026, with Veronica Fusaro, while the song was revealed and released on 11 March;[6][7] it was "Alice",[8] as Blick had unofficially confirmed shortly before the broadcaster's announcement.[9]
Promotion
As part of the promotion of her participation in the contest, Veronica Fusaro attended the Nordic Eurovision Party in Oslo on 21 March 2026[10] and the London Eurovision Party on 19 April 2026.[11]
At Eurovision
The Eurovision Song Contest 2026 will take place at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna, Austria, and consist of two semi-finals held on the respective dates of 12 and 14 May and the final on 16 May 2026. All nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Four" (France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final will progress to the final. On 12 January 2026, an allocation draw was held to determine which of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show, each country will perform in; the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot.[12] Switzerland was scheduled for the first half of the second semi-final.[13] The shows' producers then decided the running order for the semi-finals; Switzerland was set to perform in position 7.[14]
SRG SSR is airing the contest through its subsidiaries across the country:
- French-speaking RTS is broadcasting the semi-finals on RTS 2 and the final on RTS 1, all with commentary by Victoria Turrian and Nicolas Tanner;[15]
- German-speaking SRF is broadcasting the semi-finals on SRF zwei and the final on SRF 1, all with commentary by Sven Epiney;[16] additionally, SRF renewed its plans with German broadcaster ARD and Austrian broadcaster ORF to cooperate on the broadcast of Eurovision-themed programmes ESC – Der Countdown and ESC – Die Aftershow for the fourth consecutive year in 2026; the shows are hosted by Barbara Schöneberger;[17]
- Italian-speaking RSI is broadcasting all shows on RSI La 1, with commentary provided by Ellis Cavallini and Gian-Andrea Costa.[18][19]
Performance
Veronica Fusaro took part in technical rehearsals on 4 and 8 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 13 and 14 May.[20] The staging of her performance of "Alice" at the contest is directed by Fredrik Rydman (who has previously done so for a number of entries, most notably Sweden in 2015, Finland in 2023 and Switzerland in 2024)[5] and features a prop consisting of net-like walls and crimson ropes; she was joined on stage by four supporting dancers.[21]
Semi-final
Switzerland performed in position 7, following the entry from Armenia and before the entry from Cyprus.[22] The country was not announced among the top 10 entries in the semi-final and therefore failed to qualify to compete in the final.
Voting
The spokesperson for the Swiss jury at the final will be Livio Chistell.[23]