Following a public vote, Finland has chosen “Liekinheitin” (Flamethrower) by the crossover violinist Linda Lampenius and pop singer Pete Parkkonen as its official entry for the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest (ESC), which will take place in Vienna in May.
More than 2.5 million people watched the selection broadcast, and nearly 447,000 of those viewers cast votes (over 100,000 more than the 2025 edition). The selection was weighted strongly in favor of the public vote at 75%, with the remaining 25% being decided by an international jury.
Finland’s YLE outlet reported that on international betting websites, “Liekinheitin” ranks as the favorite to win the entire competition. The aggregate site eurovisionworld.com gave it an 18% chance of winning, ahead of the Greek entry “Ferto” (which has a 12% chance).
The Nordic nation has only won Eurovision once before, with the 2006 entry “Hard Rock Hallelujah” by the band Lordi.
Also known as Linda Brava, Lampenius joined the Helsinki Junior Strings when she was just eight years old, and subsequently toured North America, Europe, and Asia. Her career has spanned both classical and crossover appearances, and her solo album on the EMI Classics made her one of Finland’s best-selling classical artists.
You can hear Lampenius and Parkkonen performing “Liekinheitin” below.