RTP, the Portuguese national broadcaster, has published the rules for the 2020 edition of Festival da Canção.
As with last year, 16 songs by 16 different writers will participate in the contest. Of the 16 writers, 14 will be invited to participate by RTP, one will be selected through Masterclass on Antena 1 and one will be selected through a public selection. The deadline for public submissions is October 15. While the demo versions of all participating songs must be delivered to RTP by October, the final versions must be ready by November. The composers and songs will then be revealed at a later date. According to reports from last December, “there are two composers already confirmed” for the 2020 edition. The winner of the festival will represent Portugal in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 in the Netherlands.
First held in 1964, Festival da Canção is used to select the Portuguese entry for the Eurovision Song Contest. This year, Portugal was represented by Conan Osíris and his song “Telemóveis”. He failed to qualify to the Final, placing 15th with 51 points.
Source: RTP
Portugal in the Eurovision Song Contest
Portugal debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1964 represented by Antonio Calvario, the country finished last scoring nul points. Prior to 2016, the best result of Portugal was 6th place which came in 1996 when Lucia Moniz performed in Oslo. She scored 92 points, receiving the 12 points from both Norway and Cyprus. Since their debut, Portugal have missed a total of five contests. In 2017, Portugal produced a spectacular win when Salvador Sobral took home the crystal microphone with his song “Amar Pelos Dois.” The 2018 contest was held in Lisbon, Portugal for the first time.
