Cláudia Pascoal will represent host country Portugal after winning Festival da Canção

Portugal have found their entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2018. Cláudia Pascoal has won Festival da Canção 2018 and will now go on to fly the Portuguese flag on home soil with the song “O Jardim”.

Scandal driven

The final of Festival da Canção wasn’t an easy ride for broadcaster RTP. After semifinal 1, it turned out that the wrong televotes had been announced. That resulted in one of the qualifiers being replaced. Just a week later, plagiarism claims surfaced around major favourite Diogo Piçarra. The Portuguese super star saw no other option but to withdraw from the competition.

Favourites deliver

The entire rollercoaster left Festival da Canção with an open playing field. Cláudia Pascoal, Peu Madureira and Janeiro were considered to be the big favourites ahead of the show. Catarina Miranda was seen as a dangerous dark horse. Televoting had already been open for the entire week, so not all of the votes depended on tonight’s performances.

No worries for any of the favourites, though, as they all duly delivered in their performances. When the regional juries announced their votes, Cláudia Pascoal landed in second place. “Para Sorrir Eu Não Preciso de Nada” and “O Jardim” were the clear favourites there, with Catarina Miranda eventually winning the jury vote with 71 points from seven juries. Televoting them completed the results, making Cláudia the winner on a tie-break. In a case of a tie, televoting would have the final say. That meant “O Jardim” became Portugal’s entry. Below, you can see the full results of tonight’s Festival da Canção final:

1. Cláudia Pascoal – O Jardim: 10 + 12 points = 22 points
2. Catarina Miranda – Para Sorrir Eu Não Preciso de Nada: 12 + 10 = 22 points
3. Peu Madureira – Só Por Ela: 8 + 8 = 16 points
4. Janeiro – (sem título): 6 + 6 = 12 points
5. Rui David – Sem Medo: 4 + 4 = 8 points
6. Anabela – Pra Te Dar Abrigo: 0 + 7 = 7 points
7. Joana Barra Vaz – Anda Estragar-Me Os Planos: 7 + 0 points = 7 points
8. Lili – O Vôo Das Cegonhas: 1 + 5 = 6 points
9. Joana Espadinha – Zero A Zero: 5 + 0 = 5 points
10. Susana Travassos – Mensageira: 4 + 0 points = 4 points
11. Peter Serrado – Sunset: 0 + 3 points = 3 points
12. Maria Inês Paris – Bandeira Azul: 2 +1 = 3 points
13. Minnie & Rhayra – Patati Patata: 0 + 2 = 2 points
14. David Pessoa – Amor Veloz: 0 + 0 = 0 points

Home soil

It will be the first time that a Portuguese Eurovision entrant will represent the country on home soil. This has of course all been caused by the victory Salvador Sobral delivered in Kyiv last year.

Portugal have automatically qualified for the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2018. They’ll be hosting the show in the MEO Arena in Lisbon on 8, 10 and 12 May this year. Can the Portuguese entry, “O Jardim” by Cláudia Pascoal, set the scoreboard on fire once more?

Let us know what you think about the winner of Festival da Canção below! Did Portugal make the right choice?