Bulgaria in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012


Bulgaria participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku, Azerbaijan. The Bulgarian entry was selected through a national final, organised by the Bulgarian broadcaster Bulgarian National Television. Sofi Marinova represented Bulgaria with the song "Love Unlimited", which failed to qualify from the second semi-final, achieving 11th place with 45 points.

Before Eurovision

Bylgarskata pesen za Evroviziya 2012

Bylgarskata pesen za Evroviziya 2012 was the national final format developed by BNT in order to select Bulgaria's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2012. The competition consisted of a semi-final and a final on 14 and 29 February 2012 respectively. Both shows took place at the National Palace of Culture in Sofia, hosted by Milenita, Alexander Sano and Dragomir Draganov.

Competing entries

Artists and songwriters were able to submit their entries from 25 August 2011 to 11 November 2011. BNT received 64 entries, and a jury committee, titled Academy, selected twenty-two songs for the competition in two rounds: the first to shortlist 33 songs and the second to select the 22 competing entries. The list of competing artists and songs were released on 24 November 2011.

Semi-final

The semi-final took place on 14 January 2012. Twenty-two songs competed and twelve entries advanced to the final. The winners of the Academy and the SMS vote automatically advanced to the final. The remaining twenty entries then faced an additional vote which determined ten additional qualifiers by a 50/50 combination of points awarded by SMS voting and the members of the Academy.

Final

The final took place on 29 February 2012. Twelve songs consisting of the twelve semi-final winners competed and the winner was determined by a 50/50 combination of points awarded by SMS voting and the members of the Academy.

At Eurovision

Bulgaria competed in the first half of the second semi-final, on 24 May 2012, following Ukraine and preceding the Slovenia. Bulgaria received 45 points and placed 11th, thus failing to qualify for the final on 26 May. Bulgaria tied for 10th place with Norway, however, under tiebreak rules, the number of countries that voted for Norway was higher than the number for Bulgaria. This resulted in Norway qualifying to the final over Bulgaria.

Split results

Points awarded by Bulgaria

Semi-final 2

Points awarded in second semi-final:
12 points
10 points
8 points
7 points
6 points
5 points
4 points
3 points
2 points
1 point

Final

Points awarded in the final:
12 points
10 points
8 points
7 points
6 points
5 points
4 points
3 points
2 points
1 point