RTP, the Portuguese national broadcaster has confirmed to ESCToday that Portugal will participate at the forthcoming 2017 Eurovision Song Contest in Ukraine.

Portugal will be returning to the Eurovision party next year after a year’s absence from the competition.  RTP withdrew from competing in the event this year in Stockholm.

RTP is yet to determine the mechanism it will use to select its Eurovision entry for Ukraine. More details regarding the 2017 Portuguese Eurovision project will be released in due course.

Thus Portugal joins Slovenia, Armenia, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Switzerland, France, Germany, Ukraine, The Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland and Estonia all whom have confirmed their participation at the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest in Ukraine.

In 2015 Portugal selected its Eurovision entry and act for Vienna via its traditional Eurovision national selection Festival da Cançao. Leonor Andrade represented Portugal at the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest with her Há um Mar que nos Separa. Despite an extraordinary performance she failed to qualify to the grand final.

Portugal debuted at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1964 and is yet to win the event. The country’s best result in the competition was achieved in 1996 when Lucia Muniz placed 6th with her entry O meu coraçao na tem cor.

The preliminary dates for the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest have been set on 9,11 and 13 May.