Australia first participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 as part of a one-off celebrating the 60th contest, as the nation has been broadcasting the contest since 1983 and had proved to be popular.
Julia Zemiro and Sam Pang were sent as commentators for the first time in 2009 and covered every contest for SBS until 2016. Myf Warhurst and Joel Creasey succeeded them in 2017, with Creasey acting as the Australian spokesperson in 2021.
Artists that had either been born or resided in Australia have made great contributions to the contest throughout the contest's history: most notably Olivia Newton-John (for the United Kingdom in 1974), Gina G (for the United Kingdom in 1996), and Johnny Logan (a two-time winner for Ireland, winning in 1980 and 1987). In 2014, Jessica Mauboy performed as part of the second semi-final interval act, showcasing the Australians' love for the contest over the years.
2015 Guest participation[]
As the guest for 2015, the EBU decided to give Australia a direct qualification to the final along with hosts Austria and the Big Five, along with voting privileges in both semis. This was done in fairness to the 33 remaining countries allocated to the semifinals, allowing them an equal shot to qualify for the final on their own merit.
Normally, Australia would not be allowed to enter because they do not fulfil the criteria of either being located in the European Broadcasting Area or being an active EBU member (their broadcaster, SBS, is an associate EBU member).
2016 and beyond[]
Due to massive positive feedback from fans and media, the EBU extended the invitation to Australia to participate again in 2016, however they would have to try and qualify from the semifinals. They succeeded, winning the second semifinal and finishing second overall in the grand final, winning the jury vote.
SBS accepted NTU's invitation to return for the 2017 contest in Kiev under the same participation rule from 2016 and secured another top 10 placing.
RTP invited Australia to participate in Lisbon in 2018, which was confirmed on 24 August 2017.
On 1 October 2018, SBS accepted the invitation from IPBC (KAN) to participate in Tel Aviv in 2019. For the first time, the country held a national selection to choose their entry. On 12 Feburary 2019, the EBU gave SBS a five-year guarantee, locking in Australian participation in the contest until at least 2023.
On 5 December 2023, it was confirmed that Australia would also participate in the 2024 contest.
The Aussie Rule[]
In the event of an Australian victory, the following year's contest would not be held in Australia. Instead, SBS would choose a EBU member country (more than likely a member of the Big Five) and work alongside its main broadcaster as a co-host, as well as given the chance to defend its title. This rule was introduced upon its guest participation in 2015 and would remain as long as Australia is invited to participate. It would also be likely that this rule would be the same for any associate member that is invited by the EBU to take part in the contest.
Gallery[]
Participants[]
Year | Artist | Song | Language | Place | Points | Semi | Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | Guy Sebastian | Tonight Again | English | 5 | 196 | Guest Participation | |
2016 | Dami Im | Sound of Silence | 2 | 511 | 1 | 330 | |
2017 | Isaiah | Don't Come Easy | 9 | 173 | 6 | 160 | |
2018 | Jessica Mauboy | We Got Love | 20 | 99 | 4 | 212 | |
2019 | Kate Miller-Heidke | Zero Gravity | 9 | 284 | 1 | 280 | |
2020 | Montaigne | Don't Break Me | Contest cancelled | ||||
2021 | Technicolour | -- | -- | 14 | 28 | ||
2022 | Sheldon Riley | Not The Same | 15 | 125 | 2 | 243 | |
2023 | Voyager | Promise | 9 | 151 | 1 | 149 | |
2024 | Electric Fields | One Milkali (One Blood) | -- | -- | 11 | 41 |
Trivia[]
- The country is one of six to have participated in every contest since their debut, the others being Albania, Azerbaijan, Latvia, Moldova, and Spain.
- Due to travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, the Australian delegation could not travel to Rotterdam. Montaigne performed via their live-on-tape backup, while Myf Warhurst and Joel Creasey did all commentary from a studio in Sydney. The commentators decided who would be spokesperson via a coin toss, with Creasey winning.