This year in Basel 2025, Ireland will mark its 58th participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. Ireland holds a prestigious status in the competition’s history, boasting seven victories in total. However, last year, Sweden caught up, also securing seven victories. One of Ireland’s most remarkable records is winning the contest three consecutive years, from 1992 to 1994, a feat unmatched by any other country to date. It’s safe to say that the 1990s were the golden era of Irish dominance in the Eurovision Song Contest.

In recent years, numerous countries have chosen English-language songs in hopes of boosting their chances of success, following the trend set by Irish and UK entries. However, this shift has posed a challenge for non-native English-speaking countries to distinguish themselves, as their songs may not resonate as readily with the broader audience. Moreover, the growing number of participating countries has heightened the competition, making it increasingly difficult for any single country to maintain consistent success.

Furthermore, the introduction of the Semi Finals in 2004 has significantly contributed to a decline in overall interest in the Eurovision Song Contest. With Ireland now required to navigate the qualification process annually, there’s no guarantee of reaching the Grand Final anymore. Various factors may be at play, including a shortage of compelling songs, modern compositions, and the overall intensification of competition. Some attribute this perceived decline in Irish fortunes to the inclusion of Eastern European countries, suggesting that increased diversity has diluted Ireland’s chances of success.

Johnny Logan from Ireland in Oslo (2010) Photo: eurovisionlive

In the annals of Eurovision history, one standout figure for Ireland is Johnny Logan. He achieved the remarkable feat of winning the contest twice as a singer, with „What’s Another Year“ in 1980 and „Hold Me Now“ in 1987. Impressively, Logan also secured victory as a composer with „Why Me,“ performed by Linda Martin in 1992. His triple triumph solidifies his legacy as one of the most celebrated figures in Eurovision lore.

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Ireland still maintains relatively high odds of securing a spot in the Top 10, standing at 67%. The country’s musical identity is often associated with ethnic music and ballads, although there have been endeavours over the years to introduce modern pop music into the Eurovision arena. Notably, Jedward injected a fresh energy into the contest with „Lipstick“ in 2011, earning 8th place, and „Waterline“ in 2012, placing 19th. However, in recent years, Ireland has faced challenges, failing to advance to the Grand Final five times in a row. Apart from Ryan O’Shaughnessy’s performance with „Together“ in Lisbon 2018, Ireland has struggled to make it past the Semi Finals. Last the extrovert performer Bambie Thug could reach a surprising 6th place with “Doomsday Blue”, the song led to a lot of controversial discussion.

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Biggest successes

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1st place, Dana with “All Kinds Of Everything” (Amsterdam 1970)

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1st place, Johnny Logan with “Hold Me Now” (Brussels 1987)

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1st place, Niamh Kavanagh with “In Your Eyes” (Millstreet 1993)

History

  • Debut: 1965
  • Participations: 57
  • Victories: 7
  • Finals: 48 (10 since 2004)
  • Chances to reach the final: 84% (50% since 2004)
  • Top 10: 32 (3 since 2004)
  • Chances to reach the Top 10: 67% (15% since 2004)
  • Best place: 1 (7x)
  • Last places: 2x (final), 2x (semi-final)
# host city year performer song points place show
1 Naples 1965 Butch Moore I’m Walking The Streets In The Rain 11 6 final
2 Luxembourg 1966 Dickie Rock Come Back To Stay 14 4 final
3 Vienna 1967 Sean Dunphy If I Could Choose 22 2 final
4 London 1968 Pat McGeegan Chance Of A Lifetime 18 4 final
5 Madrid 1969 Muriel Day and the Lindsays The Wages Of Love 10 7 final
6 Amsterdam 1970 Dana All Kinds Of Everything 32 1 final
7 Dublin 1971 Angela Farrell One Day Love 79 11 final
8 Edinburgh 1972 Sandie Jones Ceol On Ghrá 72 15 final
9 Luxembourg 1973 Maxi Do I Dream? 80 10 final
10 Brighton 1974 Tina Cross Your Heart 11 7 final
11 Stockholm 1975 The Swarbriggs That’s What Friends Are For 68 9 final
12 The Hague 1976 Red Hurley When 54 10 final
13 London 1977 The Swarbriggs Plus Two It’s Nice To Be In Love Again 119 3 final
14 Paris 1978 Colm T. Wilkinson Born To Sing 86 5 final
15 Jerusalem 1979 Cathal Dunne Happy Man 80 5 final
16 The Hague 1980 Johnny Logan What’s Another Year 143 1 final
17 Dublin 1981 Sheeba Horoscopes 105 5 final
18 Harrogate 1982 The Duskeys Here Today, Gone Tomorrow 49 11 final
Munich 1983 withdrawn
19 Luxembourg 1984 Linda Martin Terminal ‚3‘ 137 2 final
20 Gothenburg 1985 Maria Christian Wait Until The Weekend Comes 91 6 final
21 Bergen 1986 Luv Bug You Can Count On Me 96 4 final
22 Brussels 1987 Johnny Logan Hold Me Now 172 1 final
23 Dublin 1988 Jump the Gun Take Him Home 79 8 final
24 Lausanne 1989 Kiev Connolly and the Missing Passengers The Real Me 21 18 final
25 Zagreb 1990 Liam Reilly Somewhere In Europe 132 2 final
26 Rome 1991 Kim Jackson Could It Be That I’m In Love 47 10 final
27 Malmö 1992 Linda Martin Why Me 155 1 final
28 Millstreet 1993 Niamh Kavanagh In Your Eyes 187 1 final
29 Dublin 1994 Paul Harrington and Charlie McGettigan Rock ’n‘ Roll Kids 226 1 final
30 Dublin 1995 Eddie Friel Dreamin‘ 44 14 final
31 Oslo 1996 Eimear Quinn The Voice 162 1 final
32 Dublin 1997 Marc Roberts Mysterious Woman 157 2 final
33 Birmingham 1998 Dawn Is Always Over Now? 64 9 final
34 Jerusalem 1999 The Mullan’s When You Need Me 18 17 final
35 Stockholm 2000 Eamonn Toal Millennium Of Love 92 6 final
36 Copenhagen 2001 Gary O’Shaughnessy Without Your Love 6 21 final
Tallinn 2002 not qualified
37 Riga 2003 Mickey Harte We’ve Got The World 53 11 final
38 Istanbul 2004 Chris Doran If My World Stopped Turning 7 22 final
39 Kyiv 2005 Donna and Joseph McCaul Love? 53 14 semi-final
40 Athens 2006 Brian Kennedy Every Song Is A Cry For Love 93 10 final
41 Helsinki 2007 Dervish They Can’t Stop The Spring 5 24 final
42 Belgrade 2008 Dustin the Turkey Irelande Douze Points 22 15 semi-final
43 Moscow 2009 Sinéad Mulvey & Black Daisy Et Cetera 52 11 semi-final
44 Oslo 2010 Niamh Kavanagh It’s For You 25 23 final
45 Düsseldorf 2011 Jedward Lipstick 119 8 final
46 Baku 2012 Jedward Waterline 46 19 final
47 Malmö 2013 Ryan Dolan Only Love Survives 5 26 final
# host city year performer song points place show
48 Copenhagen 2014 Can-Linn (featuring Kasey Smith) Heartbeat 35 12 semi-final
49 Vienna 2015 Molly Sterling Playing With Numbers 35 12 semi-final
50 Stockholm 2016 Nicky Byrne Sunlight 46 15 semi-final
51 Kyiv 2017 Brendan Murray Dying to Try 86 13 semi-final
52 Lisbon 2018 Ryan O’Shaughnessy Together 136 16 final
53 Tel Aviv 2019 Sarah McTernan 22 16 18 semi-final
Corona 2020 Lesley Roy Story Of My Life
54 Rotterdam 2021 Lesley Roy MAPS 20 16 semi-final
55 Turin 2022 Brooke That’s Rich 47 15 semi-final
56 Liverpool 2023 Wild Youth We Are One 10 12 semi-final
57 Malmö 2024 Bambie Thug Doomsday Blue 278 6 final
58 Basel 2025 Emmy Laika Party 28 13 semi-final

Video Nostalgia

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Colm T. Wilkinson with “Born To Sing”, Rank 5 (Paris 1978)

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Luv Bug with “You Can Count On Me”, Rank 4 (Bergen 1986)

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Mickey Harte with “We’ve Got The World”, Rank 11 (Riga 2003)