Greece hits the Eurovision countdown button: ERT unveils its 2026 hopefuls in a three-hour TV event

You know Eurovision season has really started when broadcasters stop teasing and just say: right, here we go.

That’s basically what ERT is doing on Sunday 4 January 2026. No mystery drops. No vague press notes. A full three-hour TV show, live on ERT1, to introduce all 28 acts competing to represent Greece at Eurovision this year.

The show is called Sing for Greece. Which already tells you everything you need to know about the tone.

From 7pm to 10pm, Greece will sit down and properly meet the artists heading into February’s national final. Faces, voices, backstories, nerves. The human stuff.

Not just names on a screen

This isn’t one of those dry “here are the finalists, good luck everyone” announcements.

The show will be hosted by Bety Maggira, joined by Kelly Vranaki and Thanos Papachamos, and it’s built to feel like a proper Eurovision warm-up. Interviews. Backstage clips. Artists explaining why they’re there and what they’re bringing. The kind of details fans immediately latch onto.

Viewers will also hear snippets of the competing songs for the first time. Not full performances yet, but enough to start ranking, comparing and arguing before January is even over.

Which, let’s be honest, is half the fun.

A familiar face, but not in the way you expect

One of the night’s talking points will be the return of Klavdia. She’s not back to compete. She’s there in a different role, more symbolic than competitive.

Her appearance leads into the live draw for the running order of the 28 songs across the two semi-finals in February. It sounds procedural. It isn’t. This is the moment when everything becomes real for the artists.

From this point on, positions matter. Momentum starts building. Pressure sneaks in.

This is where the journey actually starts

There’s something very Greek about doing this properly. Making space for the artists. Letting the audience connect before the competition even begins.

With this show, Greece isn’t quietly edging towards Eurovision 2026 in Vienna. It’s stepping forward and saying: this is our selection, and we’re proud of it.

No winner yet. No favourites crowned. Just the starting line.

And once that countdown clock starts ticking, there’s no turning back.

Source: ERT