A decade of song: Eurovision winners through the years (2010-2017)

Today we are looking at the most recent winners of the Eurovision Song Contest but if you're curious to hear all the songs then take a step back in time and watch the video below!

Oslo 2010 - Lena (Germany)

Thirty-nine countries took part in the 2010 contest, which was produced under the slogan Share the Moment; it was Lena from Germany who took the prize home that year with her song Satellite. 

Germany, as one of the so-called Big Five (or Big Four as it was in 2010), has automatic qualification to the Grand Final. Lena had been the main favourite to win the 2010 contest for months, but her victory came as a total surprise for others. It was Germany’s first win since 1982 when Nicole took the trophy with Ein Bisschen Frieden, and the second German win in total.

Satellite reached the first place in the German charts, and the day after the Grand Final two of her other songs charted at #4 and #5 in the German charts. Satellite also charted internationally and was seen by many as a contemporary sound and a breakthrough for the young star. 

Lena in 2017:

Dusseldorf 2011 - Ell and Nikki (Azerbaijan)

Lena won Eurovision in 2010 and therefore she brought 2011 Eurovision Song Contest to Düsseldorf. An impressive forty-three countries took part, with a surprising return of Italy after a 14 year absence. Italy became part of the Big Five alongside Spain, Germany, France and the United Kingdom. 

Ell and Nikki won the Eurovision Song Contest with their song Running Scared receiving a total of 221 points, leaving Italy behind in second place with 189 points. It was the first time that Azerbaijan won the contest after a string of strong results. The song Running Scared fared reasonably well in the European charts, reaching #2 in Iceland and #7 in Belgium. 

Baku 2012 - Loreen (Sweden)

With Ell and Nikki from Azerbaijan winning the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest, the contest travelled to Baku in 2012. It was the most eastern city the contest was ever held in. The slogan for that year was Light Your Fire, which was fitting for Azerbaijan, known as The Land of Fire. 

Sweden’s Loreen took the prize home that year with her song Euphoria. It was the contest’s favourite song since it appeared for the first time in Sweden’s national selection Melodifestivalen. The song became a worldwide hit, selling more than two million copies all over the globe. 

Another remarkable fact from the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest was that Euphoria received the highest number of 12 points of any entry in the history of the contest at that time. Eighteen countries gave the song 12 points, which meant that Loreen got an impressive total of 372 points.

Malmo 2013 - Emmelie de Forest (Denmark)

Loreen took the contest to Sweden, where a total of 39 countries participated. 2013 saw the public able to vote in the official Eurovision app for the first time. There was also only one presenter in Malmö, Petra Mede, the first time since 1995. 

Emmelie de Forest from Denmark won the contest with Only Teardrops on the 13th of May in 2013. Her song reached #1 in the charts in Denmark, #3 in Sweden and Switzerland and #4 in the Dutch charts. Emmelie also co-wrote the UK entry in 2017, Never Give Up On You, performed by Lucie Jones.

Copenhagen 2014 - Conchita Wurst (Austria)

With Emmelie de Forest winning the 2013 Eurovision Contest, the contest was brought to Copenhagen, Denmark. The slogan for the event was #JoinUs, an attempt by the producers to incorporate social media into the shows. 37 countries took part in the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest, but there was only one winner: Conchita Wurst from Austria. 

Bearded drag queen Conchita became widely known because of her appearance, and she won the contest with her song Rise Like A Phoenix, receiving 290 points. It was the first win for Austria since 1966. She left The Netherlands just behind her; The Common Linnets’ song Calm After The Storm received 238 points, the best Dutch placing in the Eurovision Song Contest since they won nearly 40 years before.

Both Rise Like A Phoenix and Calm After The Storm fared well in the international charts placing in the top five in many countries. Over the years Conchita has become an ambassador for the Eurovision Song Contest and earlier this year met Céline Dion, the winner of the 1988 contest:

Vienna 2015 - Måns Zermelöw (Sweden)

The Eurovision Song Contest of 2015 was hosted in Vienna, Austria after Conchita won the contest the year before. 2015 was also the year in which the official Eurovision Song Contest logo was refreshed for the first time since it launched in 2004. 

It was the 60th anniversary for the Eurovision Song Contest and to celebrate that, Australia was invited to participate in the contest. Guy Sebastian had the honour to represent the country with the song Tonight Again; he placed 5th that year. 

The winner of the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest was Sweden’s Måns Zermelöw with the song Heroes. It’s the sixth time Sweden has won the contest and they took the contest home for the second time in three years. The song became a European hit, reaching number one in six countries.

Stockholm 2016 - Jamala (Ukraine)

The contest travelled back to Sweden, to Stockholm this time. Måns Zermelöw and Petra Mede presented the show live from the Globe Arena. More than 200 million people tuned into the live shows in 2016 and the Grand Final included a performance by global superstar Justin Timberlake. 

2016 was the year that the biggest change to the voting system since 1975 was introduced. From that moment on the public and jury votes were to be presented separately meaning that there are double the amount of points available. Australia came back to participate and ended up in second place. Ukraine’s Jamala won the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest and brought the contest to Kyiv. 

Kyiv 2017 - Salvador Sobral (Portugal)

Jamala’s victory in 2016 meant that the Eurovision Song Contest was hosted in Ukraine for the second time. Ukraine hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in 2005 but had also hosted the Junior Eurovision Song Contest in 2009 and 2013. 

The 2017 Eurovision Song Contest saw Portugal win the contest for the first time in Eurovision history. Salvador Sobral performed Amar Pelos Dois and received an impressive 758 points for his song. His sister Luisa, who composed the song, joined Salvador on stage after Portugal was announced as winner and they both gave an emotional performance of the song. 

Salvador recently took a break from music on health grounds. On behalf of the entire Eurovision family, we wish him all the best and a speedy recovery!