YLE, the Finnish national broadcaster has confirmed that Finland will participate at the forthcoming 2018 Eurovision Song Contest  in Lisbon next May.

Finland will yet again select its Eurovision act via its national selection Uuden Musiikin Kilpailun. The submission period for artists/composers to submit their entries in order to compete for the golden ticket to Lisbon will kick off in September. More details will be released on the YLE’s official website shortly.

Artists and composers wishing to enter the competition can do so by submitting their entries and applications from 1-4 September. The Finnish broadcaster has published the rules and regulations for UMK 2018.

In 2017, Finland brought Norma & John to Eurovision with the beautifully crafted ballad Blackbird. Despite an excellent performance, the duo failed to qualify to the Grand Final in Kyiv.

Finland in Eurovision

Finland debuted in the contest in 1961 and has won the competition once in 2006 with Lordi‘s Hard rock Hallelujah.

The country has encountered mixed fortunes in the contest throughout its history in the contest. The Finns have only made it once to the Top 5, namely in 2006 when they walked away with the coveted trophy.

The Nordic country has struggled to qualify to the Grand Final since the introduction of the semi-finals in 2004, thus missing out 7 times.

Eurovision 2018

The 2018 Eurovision Song Contest is scheduled to be held on 8, 10 and 12 May in Lisbon, Portugal.

The deadline for broadcasters to officially apply for Eurovision 2018 concludes by mid September. Hereafter, countries have a grace period to confirm their participation or withdraw their application without a penalty.

The final list of the 2018 Eurovision participating countries is expected to be released by the EBU later during the year.