RTVE, the Spanish national broadcaster, has confirmed to ESCToday that Spain will compete at the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest and that the 2026 Spanish Eurovision entry and act will be selected via Benidorm Fest.
Thus Spain joins the list of countries which have so far confirmed their participation at the ESC 2026 edition in Austria.
RTVE will be opting to select the Spanish Eurovision entry and act via Benidorm Fest for the fifth consecutive time. The Spanish national broadcaster has published the rules and regulations for Benidorm Fest 2026. The song submission window for Benidorm Fest 2026 will run from 5 June- 24 September 2025.
Benidorm Fest 2026 will consist of three live televised shows ( two semi-finals and a grand final). A total of 16 acts will partake in the competition, eight acts in each of the two semi-finals. The top four acts from each semi-final will proceed to the Grand Final after a 50/50 public -jury deliberation.
Hence a total of 8 acts will battle for the golden ticket to Eurovision 2026 at the Grand Final of Benidorm Fest 2026.
RTVE reserves the right to extend the number of competing acts at Benidorm Fest 2026 both in the semi-finals and grand final if it deems that the quality of the songs is high.
The 2026 Spanish Eurovision act and entry will be determined via a 50/50 jury /public voting deliberation. The public voting will consist of 25% (app, televoting,sms) and 25% (demoscopic vote).
The winner of Benidorm Fest will be awarded €100,000 whilst the composers of the winning entry will receive €50,000.
The song submission for Benidorm Fest 2026 will take place via two different mechanisms:
- RTVE will extend a direct invite to established composers and artists
- Online public song submission
RTVE is yet to confirm the dates for the three Benidorm Fest 2026 shows.
Spain at Eurovision
Spain debuted at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1961 and has won the event twice. In 2025 Melody represented Spain at the Eurovision Song Contest in Basel with her entry ‘Esa Diva‘.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEKSa9FVLqA
