Every edition of the Eurovision Song Contest is filled with memorable moments — from outfits to staging and so much more.
But what was your favourite song contest of the 2010s? That’s the question we posed to our readers several months ago. Before casting your ballots, we asked you to consider all the elements that make up a typical Eurovision show — winners, hosts, stage, slogan, postcards, interval acts, theme music, along with songs, performers and anything else that might be relevant.
After counting a total of 2,831 votes, we can reveal that Stockholm 2016 is your favourite edition of Eurovision since 2010.
Stockholm 2016 is your favourite Eurovision Song Contest of the 2010s
Eurovision 2016 took place in Stockholm’s Globen Arena. Ukraine won with Jamala and “1944”. The staging captivated audiences, particularly the unforgettable moment where a golden tree burst out of Jamala. This signified hope and rebirth. This was also the year in which hosts Måns Zelmerlöw and Petra Mede performed the iconic interval act “Love Love Peace Peace”.
The 2016 edition amassed a tally of 592 votes or 20.91% of all votes cast.
Readers previously deemed Stockholm to have had the best interval performance with “Love Love Peace Peace”, best runner-up in the form of Australia’s Dami Im and the best hosts in Petra Mede and Måns Zelmerlöw.
Not far behind is the most recent running of the contest — Tel Aviv 2019.
Memorable moments from this edition included Madonna’s performance and the “Switch Song”. The Netherlands’ Duncan Laurence won the trophy – becoming the fifth Eurovision winner from the country and the first since 1975.
A total of 575 votes lent their support to the Israeli contest — that’s 20.31% of all votes cast.
Earlier, our readers decided that 2019 had the best logo and best winner with the Netherlands’ Duncan Laurence.
The podium is completed by Lisbon 2018.
The fierce Israeli diva Netta Barzilai won with her upbeat feminist bop “Toy”. It was the fourth Israeli victory in Eurovision history. For many fans, 2018 will be remembered as the year where Eleni Foureira came second.
The nautical-themed edition picked up 386 votes or 13.63% of all votes cast.
Voters had already decided that Portugal’s homegirl Cláudia Pascoal was their favourite last-place finalist of the decade.
Poll results: What is your favourite Eurovision Song Contest of the 2010s?
- Eurovision 2016 – 20.91% (592 votes)
- Eurovision 2019 – 20.31% (575 votes)
- Eurovision 2018 – 13.63% (386 votes)
- Eurovision 2014 – 10.03% (284 votes)
- Eurovision 2015 – 9.93% (281 votes)
- Eurovision 2012 – 7.31% (207 votes)
- Eurovision 2017 – 5.19% (147 votes)
- Eurovision 2010 – 5.02% (142 votes)
- Eurovision 2013 – 3.85% (109 votes)
- Eurovision 2011 – 3.81% (108 votes)
Total Votes: 2,831
Do you agree with the results? Was Eurovision 2016 the best of the best? Or would you pick another year? Let us know below.
2019 Israel The show concept was quite generic and unoriginal, Israel had potential to add much more flavour to it but in the end, they didn’t 6/10 Songwise, it is in the upper half of the decade, but not amazing compared to 2018, 2015, even 2017… 7/10 Intro Don’t remember it 5/10 Interval so boring 3/10 The hosts spoke very good English, but I cringed so much, especially at Azi, who went after the male contests and behaved like a qween 5/10 Logo meh 5/10 Motto Meh, but I love the postcard +2 7/10 Scoreboard, or should I say score-bored?… Read more »
It sounds like you are full of hate against israel, otherwise i cant understand your unreal rankings….just fir example, you dont remember the intro? Really? Can anyone forget nettas intro in the first semi final or the original intro in the final with the airplane, go to sleep dude, you really need it
Someone’s saying s*it with homophobic undertones
2018 Portugal
Amazing concept from A to Z 10/10
Songwise, amazing too 9/10
Intro Amazing 10/10
Interval Unfortunately not amazing 4/10
So, the hosts were 50% amazing and 25% meh and 25% terrible 7/10
Logo Amazing 10/10
Motto Amazing 10/10
Scoreboard Same as usual, with nicer highlights 5/10
Final results Beautiful 10/10
Semifinal results Not that bad either and so much draaama 9/10
Total 84/100
2017 Ukraine The stage looked decent. The LED wall had some harsh effects, while the stage arc displayed washed effects. So, they did not feel in synch. I l love the beehive, and it was mostly cleverly used. I hated the background selfies. 6/10 I think I forgot most of the songs already, but they were overshadowed by the frontrunners. I love Portugal and Italy, and then nothing more. 6/10 Intro yeah ok, seen that already I guess 5/10 Interval Great job! 9/10 Handsome hosts, but a bit wooden. They did well with presenting the votes though. Awkward moment when… Read more »
2016 Sweden SVT got a quick chance to redeem themselves and they did. The stage looked very open, modern and the LED panels super-HD. However, it felt like a screensaver of an iPad mostly, very cold colours used mostly, professional but not heartwarming. 7/10 A lot of energetic songs, but so forgettable. Mostly not my genre. Happy for Ukraine in hindsight, but not at the time. 7/10 Intro I must have forgot. In my imagination I thought of something amazing but I guess it wasn’t 4/10 Interval overrated. I think it was quite disrespectful and very cheesy 6/10 Mans was… Read more »
2014 Austria I love the mature look and feel of this contest. The stage design was pretty cool with the eye, but many delegations did not use it nicely, except for Greece, Israel, Finland. The pillars made it looked bulky and should have been translucent or clothed with LED panels inside, to make it appear lighter 7/10 Songwise it was a fantastic year. It feels like 30 songs were in it to win it. A bit slow, and too many duets, but still great 9/10 Four girls were two too many, I would have ditched Mirjam and Arabella. Conchita and… Read more »
2014 Denmark This contest was small in size of participants, but it revived Eurovision for the years to come. The stage was outstanding, the arena overall pretty cool. It set new standards 10/10 I don’t listen to the songs anymore, although I think the Top 5 are pretty great, except for Undo, also Switzerland and Finland were really good that year 6/10 Those hosts were fun and loose and difficult not to enjoy 10/10 Intro ok 5/10 Interval Fun! 9/10 Logo too blue and too generic 6/10 Motto #JoinUs, so original 4/10 Scoreboard I liked how the inserted the points… Read more »
2013 Sweden What I hated the most about the contest, was it’s predictability. Already in November 2012, it was cooked for Denmark, by the choice of Malmö to host the contest in a tiny icehockey arena. It looked like ESC on a dime, the stage was random things. Overall, the smell of intransparency and corruption 2/10 I do love the songs a lot of this year. It was good. Iceland, Norway, Finland, Netherlands, Belgium, Ukraine and so on. Love it! 9/10 I am not a fan of a Petra, she sounds like a posh spokeswoman of the Queen of England… Read more »
2012 Azurrjabah…. Baku It looks like the orange and fiery version of Düsseldorf, probably on purpose, same designers with less soul. I didn’t like the stage design with the odd shapes 4/10 Songwise, a terrible contest. Except for the obvious winner and Cyprus , Turkey, and Italy, this was a dreadful event. 1/10 The hosts were cutsey but they went for jokes that did not land with their poor English. The half-Danish green room host should have had a bigger job. 2/10 Intro was poor 1/10 Interval was magic 9/10 Logo so-so 4/10 Motto too obvious 5/10 Scoreboard very 2011… Read more »
2011 Germany
I love the huge contest in the arena, big screen, green room behind the screen, main stage not so much, overall looks like an Apple product 7/10
I genuinely did not love the songs of this edition, most of them forgettable bops, and I am unhappy with the winner. Televote killed a better result. Jury winner is a joke though. 1/10
Anke fantastic, Judith professional, Stefan bye 6/10
Intro meh 6/10
Interval 4/10
Logo 7/10
Motto 10/10
Scoreboard 9/10
Final results 2/10
Semifinal results 8/10
Total 60/100
2010 Norway:
This contest ages well, and I found it brave by NRK to host such a modest contest, coming from one of the wealthiest countries in the world. I love the new green room 7/10
I don’t enjoy most of the songs though, except for France, Germany and Slovakia 3/10
Hosts were decent 6/10
Intro 9/10
Interval 10/10
Logo & Postcards 2/10
Motto 10/10
Scoreboard 4/10
Final results 9/10
Semifinal results 3/10
Total 63/100
Sorry, but I can´t share your taste…
For me is 2016 even one of the worst years in the whole history of ESC.
My favourites in this decade are 2012, 2013 and 2018.
All aspects of production were flawless and miles ahead of any other contest in this decade. After the 2013 contest which was quite dull production-wise IMO, the Swedes set a new standard in 2016 and knocked it out of the park.
Musically I think it was one of the weakest year of the decade, a lot of bland Europop, which helped Ukraine stand. The strongest contests song-wise were 2015 and 2018 IMO.
Production wise it was indeed the best year but song wise 2015 was by far the best.
Production wise it was the worst. Please check the opening of the show: never ending opening…. vide, stage, video, stage, video and so on… they opened the show 5 times. I started this opening when I was 30 years old and end it when I was 40…
Objectively-speaking, I think 2016 was the strongest on paper. A few weak songs but generally, strong, strong entries. Exciting final voting sequence. Great hosting. I can see why it won this poll.
However, favourite ESC is a personal thing, not a checklist. It’s 2014 for me.
Song wise I think 2015 was the best one, it was the strongest field in years and none of the years after has been that good. 2015 was a super year for songs,at least ten worthy winners and not a single bad song. It sort of compensated for the other wise so so production..
2016 was overall the best one though, production-wise. It had a very glossy Superbowl feeling over it but not in a bad way. Songs were good too and of course the voting was very exciting, our very own thriller!
Should be a poll about edition with best songs. I’m sure 2015 would win.
2012 was pretty good too, songwise
the hosts were amazing in 2016 but uhh the songs were mostly bland and same-y and they overall aged like avocado milk….. on the other hand 2018 had the best songs imo but the hosting was unmemorable
Don’t diss Filomena like that. Had it just been her and Daniela as a figurative straight man for her to play against, the hosting all around would’ve been excellent. Overall, the Portuguese quartet might not have been amazing but there have been a lot worse hosts over the years.
I think you have to distinguish between the competitive aspect of a contest (the songs, how they’re presented and sung and their results) and the non competitive aspects (hosting, interval acts, postcards, anything that the host broadcaster itself is responsible for). How you view a contest will depend on what aspect you prioritise. I’d prioritise the competitive aspect when reflecting on results and the songs themselves, but comparing the contests requires looking at the non competitive aspects, as the contest organisers aren’t responsible for the quality of the entries themselves. For example, Baku 2012 had a lot of great songs… Read more »
Like those swish postcards, they got a little repetative
I think 2016 is fondly remembered because of SVT’s hosting and the non competitive aspects of the show, as well as for how it didn’t line up with the odds, thus providing excitement, which was also reflected in the historic results (Greece and Bosnia and Herzegovina not qualifying, Czech Republic doing so and the start of Bulgaria’s renaissance). Even leading up to the contest itself a lot of individual contestants had hype (remember the Baltic boys phenomenon?).
No, my favourite was 2018
Some general observations: 2010 – A pretty okay year. Several really amazing songs and a decent middle. Tied with 2019 as a year with my highest rated last place. 2011 – Definitely the weakest one of the decade, but still ahead of several ’00s years. The low was *really* lengthy and embarrassing, but there were some pretty good songs too. Not much masterpieces, though. 2012 – A polarizing year with a lot of bad songs, but also several ”so bad it’s good ones” and more importantly, the largest number of excellent songs since 2008. 2013 – A solid continuation of… Read more »
I enjoy reading your opinions. I’d be interesting to read in more details. Do you keep a blog?
Thank you! 🙂 I do not have a blog yet, but I am thinking about opening one for awhile now. There’s just so much I want to talk about. 🙂
My favourite ESC of the 10’s is by far Lisbon 2018. The theme, the stage and songs were stellar, Filomena was the best hostess of this decade. Tel Aviv 2019 was actually one of my least favourite. It felt so been there, done that, generic in every aspect. Like a best of the 2010’s with a hint of meh. 2016 for me is overrated, because I don’t like Petra Mede, who is totally stuck up as a poker and slightly arrogant (give us Lynda Woodruff instead), I didn’t like Love love peace peace so much, because it is a cheesy… Read more »
According to hybrid voting, neither Austria nor Germany were last, but the UK
2019 is more recent but 2016 was awesome!!
Stockholm 2016 is my 2nd favourite contest of the decade, closely behind Copenhagen 2014 which also had everything – terrific production, awesome stage, brilliant camerawork, amusing skits, exciting voting, excellent hosts(so cool how Pilou Asbæk’s international career really took off afterwards) and arguably the best Top 3 entries of the whole century, I would’ve been equally chuffed at either Conchita, Common Linnets or Sanna winning. Worthy mentions to Kallay-Saunders, Ruth Lorenzo, Softengine, Molly SD, Sergej Cetkovic & Firelight bringing their countries’ best entries of the decade too (well imo) Bake 2012 is my 3rd, very surprised it didn’t finish Top… Read more »
All good and interesting points. I my memory, 2012 was very slick but a little soulless and felt a little ‘false’, like it was hiding something. The hosts were bland and I felt the final had a dull and slightly unpleasant atmosphere (compared to the semis, the crowd were much more fun, cheering along with Trackshittaz for example).
2011 was also very slick, but I detest Jedward and don’t like all the attention they got, which buts me off a smidge. Silly of me I know
I’m a little surprised 2015 is *that low* comparing to other years but other than that I am okay with the results.
2015 was never really loved by the fandom, it was a grown-up edition of Eurovision with a nod to the classical music. But also, the hosts, especially Mirjam, were quite stiff, and songs too slow with too many duets. Delegations tried emulate the success of Conchita and Common Linnets, so there was a lack of diversity and Mans Zelmerlöw could run away with the victory with his David Guetta song and gimmick.
Other than that, I think the musical theme, the opening, the interval act and the scoreboard were amazing.
I wasn’t so keen on the quality of songs and hosts at the time, but I watched the DVD of it recently and it was much better than I remembered. The theming and branding felt that bit more sophisticated, as well as the classical music peppered throughout it.
2015 could have been the best but then stage, hosts and the winner ruined it. At least for me.