Bandidos do Cante Win Festival da Cancao and Will Represent Portugal at Eurovision 2026

After three weeks of competition, Portugal has its Eurovision entry. Bandidos do Cante, a vocal group from Beja in the Alentejo, won the Festival da Canção on Saturday night with their song "Rosa," securing Portugal's spot at the Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna this May.

The victory carries extra significance this year. Of the sixteen acts competing in the festival, only a handful said they would actually go to Eurovision if they won. Several artists had indicated they would boycott the contest, making the outcome partly a question of who would be willing to represent the country at all. Bandidos do Cante were among those who made clear from the start that they wanted to be on that stage in Vienna.

From Alentejo Folk to National Spotlight

The group's roots are in Cante Alentejano, the traditional polyphonic singing of southern Portugal that UNESCO recognized as Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2014. Five childhood friends from Beja — Miguel Costa, Duarte Farias, Francisco Raposo, Luís Aleixo, and Francisco Pestana — grew up steeped in this tradition before channelling it into contemporary pop.

They started performing together in 2022, initially under the name Amigos do Alentejo. By 2023 they had rebranded as Bandidos do Cante and began releasing original music that blended Alentejo's distinctive vocal harmonies with modern production. Their debut single "Amigos Coloridos" became the most-played Portuguese song on national radio at the time of its release.

"Rosa" continues in that vein — a song that feels rooted in Portuguese soil while reaching for something universal. The track was written by a large collaborative team including the group members themselves alongside Bluay, Gonçalo Narciso, Gui Alface, and Kasha.

A Festival Shaped by Controversy

This year's Festival da Canção was marked by an unusual dynamic. The Eurovision boycott movement, which has gained traction in several European countries over the past two years, cast a shadow over the competition. Seven of the ten finalists had publicly stated they would refuse to attend Eurovision even if they won, raising questions about the purpose of the selection process itself.

For RTP, the public broadcaster that organizes the festival, the situation was delicate. The Festival da Canção has historically served as Portugal's official Eurovision selection mechanism, and having the majority of competitors reject its primary function created an awkward spectacle.

In the end, the public vote proved decisive. Voting was split equally between seven regional juries and the viewing public, and it was the popular vote that pushed Bandidos do Cante over the line. The result suggests that whatever the artistic community's reservations, a significant portion of the Portuguese public still wants to see their country compete on the European stage.

The Road to Vienna

Portugal is scheduled to perform in Semi-final 1 on Tuesday, 12 May in Vienna. The country has a mixed Eurovision history — decades of modest results punctuated by Salvador Sobral's stunning victory with "Amar pelos Dois" in 2017, which remains one of the contest's most celebrated winning entries.

Whether Bandidos do Cante can replicate that magic remains to be seen, but they bring something distinctive: a sound that is unmistakably Portuguese, built on a tradition that predates the contest by centuries. In a competition often dominated by generic pop, that authenticity could be their greatest asset.

The final of the Festival da Canção was held at the Valentim de Carvalho studios in Lisbon, hosted by Vasco Palmeirim and Filomena Cautela, with Alexandre Guimarães and Catarina Maia presenting from the Green Room. Last year's representative Napa performed their hit "Deslocado" during the show.