05 March 2026

As the Eurovision national final season draws to a close, we reach arguably the biggest national final of them all with Sweden’s Melodifestivalen. The 2026 edition hasn’t been a great one with either names or songs, or originality. The big names that did return, like Sanna Nielsen and Robin Bengtsson, were probably the most disappointing and unoriginal of them all. Throughout the heats, there wasn’t anything that begged to be picked for the final, especially from those that were eliminated. So, we have a Melfest final of 12 songs and a heavy favourite for the winner that isn’t that great anyway. Dare I say: Yawn!

The Heats

Melfest repeated the format of the past two years with five heats and then a second chance repechage round. Six songs in each heat with two progressing to the final and the third placed song into the repechage. The repechage was held immediately after Heat 5 and used a combination of votes from the heats and a new round of voting. Meria Omar and Robin Bengtsson emerged from that phase.

Even with this generally lacklustre edition of Melfest, there were a few somewhat interesting and even unique entries worth noting from the heats.

Alexa was the most interesting for her name and history alone. She’s most famous to Eurovision fans for winning the only edition of the American Song Contest for Oklahoma in 2022. She’s also a huge K-Pop star. Unfortunately, her song, Tongue Tied felt a bit tongue tied in presentation, and I really hoped for something more akin to Wonderland – her entry in the ASC. Alexa performed in Heat 5 and did at least reach the repechage, where she finished fifth of the five entries.

Heat 5 was actually quite pleasant overall, with all six entries offering something worthwhile. While Blade (who performed previously in 2015 and 2016 as Isa) was good with Who You Are, I particularly liked Vilhelm Buchaus with Hearts Don’t Lie. Very easy on the ear, and something more likely to be heard out of Denmark.

From Heat 3 was the delightful Emilia Pantic performing the equally delightful Ingenting. Sadly, this sort of song has no chance in modern Melfest with all the generic and derivative English language stuff.

The Final

01 A-Teens – Iconic
02 Meira Omar – Dooset daram
03 Lilla Al-Fadji – Delulu
04 Saga Ludvigsson – Ain’t Today
05 Smash Into Pieces – Hollow
06 Cimberly – Eternity
07 Medina – Viva L’Amor
08 Greczula – Half Of Me
09 Robin Bengtsson – Honey Honey
10 Felicia – My System
11 Sanna Nielsen – Waste Your Love
12 Brandsta City Släckers – Rakt in i elden

Honourable Mention

Sanna Nielsen – Waste Your Live

Yes, Sanna Nielsen, Sweden’s 2014 Eurovision representative (where she finished third with Undo), is back and probably with her weakest entry ever. Of course, I couldn’t go by without mentioning her, and that’s despite the song being quite bland and derivative, and it even lacks the classic Sanna vocals to get you excited.

My Top 5

05 Smash Into Pieces – Hollow

Their third appearance since 2023 and the first after finishing third in 2024. This is Smash Into Pieces by the numbers. Not their best effort while still quite good. Like much of this year’s Melfest, it feels a bit hollow!

04 Felicia – My System

A full on techno, dance and light show. Yes, it’s good and entertaining. Personally, the mask really ticks me off and there just isn’t that much “song” to it.

03 Greczula – Half Of Me

Greczula made a huge impact with his Melfest debut in 2025, where he finished third. While this year’s entry isn’t as strong, it’s still distinctive.

02 Cimberly – Eternity

Cimberly won Swedish Idol in 2023 and you can see why with that sultry and smooth voice. She’s joined by two others to produce some truly outstanding harmonies in this very engaging song. Her mother is Finnish and her father is Kenyan.

01 A-Teens – Iconic

The group that’s been around since the late 1990s, they are more the A-Fogeys considering they are now in their 40s. Even with their enduring fame, I couldn’t name one song of theirs, nor recall any specifically, not care two hoots about their existence. That’s until now where they are simply the most fun, engaging and memorable entry of this year’s Melfest. They should win if Sweden and, especially, the international had a brain. This is just so iconic Swedish!

Prediction

Felicia is the raging favourite in the betting markets at a 70% chance, and that’s probably more to do with her entry standing out as notably different from the pack, and even for Melfest in general. Greczula is next best at an 8% chance with the rest at 5% or under. Felicia performs from tenth position of the 12 finalists, so that indicates a strong chance in the minds of the producers. In contrast, the A-Teens start first. I’m a little puzzled and disturbed by it all to the point that I’m almost at zero interest to watch it.

The final of Melodifestivalen 2026 takes place on Saturday 7 March 2026 at 20:00 local time. Check SVT Play, either the website or app, closer to the date to find the English commentary option.

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