Spain: Eurovision selects through Operación Triunfo again

Operación Triunfo, the Spanish talent show, will function as Spain’s selection method for Eurovision 2018. The final date and format details are yet to be announced.

Operación Triunfo was last used to select the Spanish entry in 2004. RTVE has returned to this format after not having much success with Objetivo Eurovision, which took place in 2016 and 2017.

Operación Triunfo & The Eurovision Song Contest

Rosa López won the first edition in 2002 with the song Europe’s living a celebration. She finished in 7th place with 81 points. Which, up until that point was Spain’s best result in the contest for 15 years.

While it was televised, Operación Triunfo would regularly reach over 13 million viewers. This would be equal to around 80% of the market share in Spain.

Objectivo Eurovision not successful for Spain

In 2016, Objetivo Eurovision sent Barei and her song Say Yay to Eurovision. She ended up second to last with 77 points. Then last year, Spain used Objetivo Eurovision to select Manuel Navarro and the song ‘Do it for your Lover’ for Kiev. There was a tiebreaker with 2 jury members opting for Manuel and the last remaining jury member opting for Mirela. Many thought this was the wrong choice to make. Spain ended up last in the Grand Final with a single figure total of 5 points.