Moldova returns to Eurovision 2026 – and this time the strategy looks very different

There are Eurovision comebacks, and then there are Eurovision statements. Moldova’s return to the contest in 2026 very much belongs to the second category. After sitting out the 2025 season, the country isn’t crawling back quietly. It’s returning with a rebooted national selection, two heavyweight producers, a 20-member jury and the kind of language that suggests Moldova is tired of leaving its fate to coincidence.

No “internal selection dropped at midnight”, no “we’ll see what happens”. Moldova is building a system.

A new selection format – not just a refreshed poster

The most interesting part isn’t the comeback itself, but how Moldova has chosen to structure it. TRM, the national broadcaster, has handed the process to two official producers: Serghei Orlov, who has more Eurovision mileage than most delegations combined, and Roman Burlaca, a director credited with shaping the sound and visuals of Moldova’s modern pop scene.

Translated from broadcaster-speak: this is not a talent show, it is a curated export project.

Add to that a 20-person jury (15 Moldovan, 5 international) and you suddenly have a selection that looks less like a local TV evening and more like a miniature music industry summit. Whether the final show will live up to the ambition is still unknown, but the framework itself already feels like a country trying to level up.

Why 2026 matters more than “just another return”

This isn’t a random year to re-enter. 2026 marks two milestones:
– 70 years of Eurovision history
– Moldova’s 20th participation in the contest

That combination gives TRM the perfect excuse to say: if we’re doing this, we’re doing it properly. And honestly, fair enough. Moldova has always been a wildcard nation at Eurovision – the kind that arrives with a sax, a prank, a folklore twist and somehow lands Top 10 while bigger broadcasters spend five times the budget for half the score.

The truth is simple: Moldova has never needed a high-concept staging to be memorable. It just needed a song with personality and a performer who looked like they were having more fun than the audience. “Hey Mamma”, “Sugar”, “So Lucky”, “Epic Sax Guy” – this is not a country that blends in.

So a more structured selection doesn’t mean “goodbye chaos”. It means controlled chaos.

Why the fandom is paying attention

The moment TRM opened submissions for Eurovision 2026, the message was clear: Moldova isn’t sleepwalking back into the contest. It’s resetting the machine.
A producer-led format suggests the kind of behind-the-scenes mentorship smaller delegations often lack. A 20-member jury suggests TRM has finally learned that “one panel of three friends on a sofa” doesn’t always get you to the grand final.

And while we don’t know which artists will enter, the structure alone already signals ambition. Eurovision 2026 will be held in Vienna. Moldova has placed third there once already. Someone at TRM definitely remembers.

What to watch for next

For now, submissions are open until early December, and full rules are live on TRM’s website. The show itself has not been given a broadcast date yet, though the broadcaster has confirmed that the winner will receive financial support andongoing guidance from both producers – a rare promise in Eurovision land, where many acts are handed a flag and a plane ticket and wished “baftă”.

If Moldova delivers a competitive line-up under this new system, it may quietly become the model for other small broadcasters who don’t have money to waste but still want results.

And imagine the headlines if, twenty participations in, the country scores another Top 3.
Not impossible. Moldova has done stranger things on a Monday .

Source: TRM