Canada will compete in the 2027 Eurovision Song Contest, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation said on Wednesday.
The decision, announced in a news release on Canada’s national day, came less than a week after the broadcaster became a full member of the organization that runs the high-camp singing competition.
Marie-Philippe Bouchard, the corporation’s president, said in a statement that the contest would “allow Canadian talent to be showcased on one of the most storied music stages in the world.”
Although Eurovision started in the spirit of bringing European nations together after World War II, countries outside the continent have long taken part, including Australia, which debuted in 2015, and Israel, which has won Eurovision four times since first competing in 1973.
Canada also has some history with the contest, and several Canadian singers have already taken part — most notably Celine Dion, who won the 1988 contest for Switzerland.
Many Eurovision fans had been expecting Canada to announce its participation after a line in the country’s federal budget last November referred to Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government “working with” the CBC “to explore participation in Eurovision.”
Carney has also made numerous efforts to strengthen Canada’s ties to Europe, including signing a security agreement with the European Union last year, in the face of President Trump’s hostility toward the country.
Yet there wasn’t much familiarity with Eurovision in Canada, said Karen Fricker, a professor at Brock University in Ontario who has studied the contest for over 20 years and who said she had watched this year’s edition via a YouTube stream from a Toronto bar.
Given that lack of awareness, Fricker said that Canadians would likely meet Wednesday’s announcement with a mix of “excitement, curiosity and confusion.” There could also be a backlash from people annoyed at spending money on a European singing competition while Canadians are experiencing soaring living costs.
Eurovision fans have so far given the idea of Canadian participation a mixed reception, with some writing on fan sites and social media that no country outside Europe should take part. Others have welcomed the news, and urged the CBC to send a well-known Canadian pop star to next May’s show. Suggestions have included Shania Twain, Carly Rae Jepsen or the return of Celine Dion.
The news release said the corporation would announce later this year how it will choose Canada’s entry to the contest.
The addition of Canada comes at a tense time for Eurovision, with an ongoing furor over Israel’s participation in the event given the country’s military actions in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon. Five countries, including Spain, the Netherlands and Ireland, boycotted this year’s Eurovision in Vienna over Israel’s participation.
