The prevailing mood among Greek Eurofans after the completion of the Eurovision 2026 Grand Final is a combination of a landing in reality and restrained disappointment…
This year’s event has already gone down in history with a historic upset and the great victory of Bulgaria , which managed to win the coveted trophy for the first time, overturning many of the predictions of recent weeks. At the same time, the Greek entry with queer artist Akylas finally took 10th place in the standings.
This is a result that, although it translates into a very respectable presence in the Top 10 of the competition, leaves a bittersweet taste due to the enormous expectations that had been cultivated within the borders in the previous period.
For weeks, the Greek media , specialized sites and especially social media in Greece had created an unprecedented wave of excitement around Akylas’ candidacy, presenting him as the absolute favorite for victory .
The analyses in the domestic media focused on the subversive and avant-garde aesthetics of the appearance, the strong queer message of visibility and the first reactions of foreign YouTubers , which were exaggerated , creating the illusion of a universal European primacy. However, the voting in the final proved that the “bubble” of the domestic networks did not fully respond to the balance of the European scene, as the votes of the critical committees and the television audience were divided into pieces of different aesthetics. In contrast, Cyprus fought its own battle on the stage, eventually occupying 19th place in the final ranking.
The big surprise of the evening came from Bulgaria , which won the impressions and the top spot. With a participation that managed to balance between excellent vocal performance and a captivating stage presence, the neighboring country won the trust of both the national jury and the televoting , bringing the trophy to Sofia for the first time. Despite the distance between the enthusiasm of the Greek internet and the final result, Akylas’ 10th place must concern those who choose the entries in a competition.
The official final ranking of the countries in the Eurovision 2026 Grand Final, along with the exact points each entry earned, was as follows:
- Bulgaria – 516 points
- Israel – 343 points
- Romania – 296 points
- Australia – 287 points
- Italy – 281 points
- Finland – 279 points
- Denmark – 243 points
- Moldova – 226 points
- Ukraine – 221 points
- Greece – 220 points
- France – 158 points
- Poland – 150 points
- Albania – 145 points
- Norway – 134 points
- Croatia – 124 points
- Czech Republic – 113 points
- Serbia – 90 points
- Malta – 89 points
- Cyprus – 75 points
- Sweden – 51 points
- Belgium – 36 points
- Lithuania – 22 points
- Germany – 12 points
- Austria – 6 points
- United Kingdom – 1 point
The jury awarded Greece 73 points , which received two 12s : from Cyprus and from Serbia. Cyprus , for its part, collected 41 points from the jury, while first at that point was Bulgaria with 204 points.
Watch and listen to the song of the winning Bulgaria:
Israel came in second place
Akylas with Ferto in the final appearance
Cyprus, with Antigone’s Jalla, came in 19th place
