Former Eurovision winner Loreen, who triumphed in 2012 with Euphoria, has secured Sweden's entry for this year's contest in Liverpool after winning Melodifestivalen on Saturday night. The Swedish TV show, one of the country's biggest, saw Loreen triumph to earn her second chance at Eurovision glory.
Loreen told the BBC Eurovisioncast podcast that she needed significant persuasion to participate again, initially declining the offer. 'It took me four weeks to decide,' she said. 'I think I'm a little bit more chillax now, so I'm going to have more fun with it.'
Sweden and Portugal both selected their acts on Saturday, completing the 37-country line-up for this May's contest. On Thursday, Mae Muller was announced as the United Kingdom's representative, describing it as a 'dream'. She noted the positive impact of Sam Ryder's recent success on public perception of the contest.
Three countries withdrew following an increase in entry fees. Tickets for the nine shows in Liverpool sold out within 90 minutes, while fans have been warned that hotel bookings are being targeted by cyber-attacks putting data at risk.
All the build-up, insights and analysis are explored weekly on the BBC podcast Eurovisioncast, available on BBC Sounds.
