Member station TVP First appearance 1994 Worst result Last: 2011 SF | Appearances 19 (13 finals) Best result 2nd: 1994 | |
 | ||
National selection events National Final
Krajowe Eliminacje do Konkursu Piosenki Eurowizji
2003–2004
Piosenka dla Europy
2006–2009
Krajowe Eliminacje
2010–2011
2016–present
Internal Selection
1994–1999
2001
2005
2014–2015 | ||
Poland has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 19 times since its debut in 1994. Although Poland did not become a member of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) until 1993, earlier contests had often been broadcast on Telewizja Polska (TVP), the Polish broadcaster.
Contents
Poland's debut in the contest in 1994 remains its most successful entry, with Edyta Górniak finishing second. The country reached the top ten for the second time with Ich Troje finishing seventh in 2003. Poland failed to qualify from the semi-finals in six out of seven years between 2005 and 2011, before withdrawing from the contest in 2012 and 2013. Since returning in 2014, Poland has qualified for the final for three consecutive years, achieving a third top ten finish in 2016, with Michał Szpak finishing eighth.
History
The first ever performance by Poland was at the 1994 contest: Edyta Górniak's song was also by far the most successful for Poland to date, receiving 166 points and placing second. Poland was almost disqualified that year though; there was no free-language rule in operation at the time, and a furor erupted at the dress rehearsal when Górniak sung the second half of "To nie ja!" in English. Six national delegations formally petitioned for Poland to be disqualified; however Eurovision rules required a majority of delegations (13 in this case) to complain before the European Broadcasting Union could examine the case for disqualification, so Poland was allowed to remain.
Subsequent Polish entries were less successful, placing between 11th and 20th. Poland did not compete in 2002. For the 2003 contest Poland organized its first public selection for Eurovision entry; It was no surprise when the group Ich Troje won the public vote ahead of Blue Café, finishing 7th in the final. Blue Café finished 17th in 2004 with "Love Song".
Poland's only appearance in the final between 2005 and 2013, was in 2008. Even then, its song ("For Life", sung by Isis Gee) placed a lowly 24th.
In 2005 TVP went back to an internal selection, picking "Czarna dziewczyna", a multilingual song performed in Polish and Russian. The song just missed out on a place in the final, coming 11th in the semi-final, as did Poland's 2006 entry. With the comeback of the public vote on TVP, Ich Troje were chosen again in 2006, but could not repeat their 7th place from 2003. Poland's 2007 entry, "Time To Party", sung by The Jet Set, only finished 14th in the semi-final.
Members of the Polish OGAE have said at their annual convention that they would like Edyta Górniak to represent Poland for a second time. For years it was unknown if Górniak would enter Eurovision again, until when in 2016 she made a second attempt at representing her country in the contest, placing third in the national final.
In December 2011, it was announced that Poland would not compete at the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku. The Polish broadcaster stated that having to organize the European Football Championship 2012 (hosted by Poland and Ukraine) was a major factor in their withdrawal. TVP informed esctoday.com that their decision to abstain does not hamper their chances of being back in 2013, thus leaving the door open for a return. However, Poland confirmed on 22 November 2012, that it will not be participating in 2013.
TVP, the Polish national broadcaster has confirmed on 5 December 2013 that Poland will return to the Eurovision Song Contest in 2014. On 25 February, it was announced that Donatan and Cleo would represent Poland with their song "My Słowianie". The song qualified for the final which is only the second time Poland has qualified for the final, the last time was 2008. Donatan and Cleo performed 9th in the final and ended up placing 14th overall, achieving Poland's best result at the contest since 2003.
In 2015 TVP selected Monika Kuszyńska and her song "In The Name Of Love" internally as well. She was the first ever Eurovision participant to sit in a wheelchair during her performance, due to the fact that she was paralyzed after being involved in a serious car accident in 2006. She qualified for the final placing 8th out of 17 and came 23rd of 27 in the final receiving ten points. Just like Donatan and Cleo she fared clearly better with the televoters, coming 4th in the semi final and 15th in the final respectively.
Contestants
Voting history
As of 2016, Poland's voting history is as follows: