Dara wins Eurovision 2026 in Vienna for Bulgaria

Dara won the Eurovision Song Contest for Bulgaria on Saturday, May 16, in Vienna, according to the official final scoreboard and Eurovision broadcasters. Her song “Bangaranga” finished first in the Grand Final of the 70th contest with 516 points, ahead of Israel in second place on 343. The United Kingdom finished last with one point, according to the published results. EurovisionWorld said the result gave Bulgaria its first victory in the contest’s history. ### How decisive was the result in the final vote? Bulgaria’s 516-point total made the gap to Israel 173 points, based on the final scoreboard published after the show in Vienna. EurovisionWorld reported that Dara led both parts of the modern voting system, taking 204 points from national juries and 312 from the public vote. Israel’s second-place finish came on 343 points, while the United Kingdom’s entry ended the night with a single point, the same scoreboard showed. (eurovisionworld.com) The result capped a final featuring 25 countries in Vienna, according to EurovisionWorld’s contest page. ### What do we know about Dara and “Bangaranga”? “Bangaranga” was Bulgaria’s winning entry in Vienna and was performed by Dara, listed on Eurovision’s participant pages as the Bulgarian act for 2026. (eurovisionworld.com) EurovisionWorld said the song was written by Dara, Anne Judith Wik, Cristian Tarcea and Dimitris Kontopoulos. EurovisionWorld also credited Fredrik Rydman with the staging for the performance that won the contest. (eurovisionworld.com) The site’s Bulgaria page identifies Dara as a Bulgarian pop artist and shows “Bangaranga” as the country’s 2026 entry. ### Why is this result notable for Bulgaria? EurovisionWorld said Saturday’s win was the first for Bulgaria since the country began competing in Eurovision. (eurovisionworld.com) Its winners archive for 1956 through 2026 lists Bulgaria among the newest winning countries after Dara’s result in Vienna. Bulgaria had been absent from the contest in recent years before returning for 2026. (eurovisionworld.com) EurovisionWorld reported before the show that Dara’s appearance came after a three-year absence from the final competition cycle for Bulgaria. ### Why was Vienna the host city this year? Vienna hosted the 2026 contest after Austria staged the 70th edition of Eurovision, according to the official contest site. (eurovisionworld.com) Eurovision’s official pages said the live shows took place on May 12, May 14 and May 16, 2026, and identified Vienna as the host city. The Grand Final took place at Wiener Stadthalle, according to EurovisionWorld’s results page. (eurovisionworld.com) The same page listed the hosts as Victoria Swarovski, Michael Ostrowski and Emily Busvine in the Green Room. ### What happens after the win? EurovisionWorld said the winning country earns the honor of hosting the next Eurovision Song Contest, which means Bulgaria’s broadcaster would ordinarily move into line for 2027 planning. (eurovision.tv) The official Eurovision site has not yet, in the material reviewed, published a host-city decision for the 2027 contest. Full voting tables, participant pages and post-show coverage are being published on Eurovision’s official site and EurovisionWorld following the May 16 Grand Final in Vienna. (eurovisionworld.com) Those pages include the final scoreboard, song credits and the contest calendar from the 2026 event. (eurovisionworld.com)