Lithuania Just Picked Its Eurovision 2026 Act… And The Televote Broke The Tie

Lithuania’s search for its next Eurovision flag-bearer wrapped up tonight in Vilnius, inside the Twinsbet Arena, with Lion Ceccah crowned the winner of Eurovizija.LT and officially booked for Vienna 2026. Eleven artists took turns trying to make the nation fall in love in three minutes, and for once the format didn’t end with a “superfinal” roulette wheel, because Lithuania has finally decided to stop making everything harder than it needs to be.

Hosting duties were handled by Gabrielė Martirosian, Eglė Kernagytė and Rimvydas Černiauskas, keeping the night moving while the show leaned into its updated system: the familiar jury + public split, but with a shiny extra layer, because alongside televoting there was also an online vote in the mix. Progress, darling. Or at least, a new way for everyone to argue on the internet.

The interval lineup also did its job of reminding us Lithuania knows how to serve. We saw Katarsi (Lithuania 2025) back in the spotlight, Aidan (Malta 2026) performing “Bella”, and Evgenya Redko turning up as the sort of local icon you invite when you want the arena to collectively lose composure.

And then the scoreboard happened.

Because yes, it ended in a tie at the top. And yes, it ended the only way these things ever end: with the televote stepping in like the final judge at a family dinner, quietly deciding who everyone has to live with.

Running order

Rug!le – “Ikona Žemaitė”
Walls of Water – “Unshakeable”
Lion Ceccah – “Sólo quiero más”
Nøra Blu – “Hold My Own”
NOY – “Stand Up”
ATIKIN – “Deganti Žemelė”
SHWR – “Contact!”
Vilnius Voices – “Grįšim”
Lolita Zero – “Salve in meum mundum”
Paulè – “Sako”
Black Biceps – “Let me cook”

Results

Lion Ceccah – “Sólo quiero más” — 22
SHWR – “Contact!” — 22
Nøra Blu – “Hold My Own” — 14
Black Biceps – “Let me cook” — 12
ATIKIN – “Deganti Žemelė” — 10
Lolita Zero – “Salve in meum mundum” — 10
Vilnius Voices – “Grįšim” — 8
Rug!le – “Ikona Žemaitė” — 7
Paulè – “Sako” — 4
Walls of Water – “Unshakeable” — 3
NOY – “Stand Up” — 0

So, what does the tie mean in real life, when the confetti machines are already warming up and the hosts are smiling through the panic? It means Lion Ceccah goes to Vienna, because when the points were level, the act with the strongest televote got the golden ticket.

Lion Ceccah now succeeds Katarsi, the grunge-rock band who represented Lithuania in 2025 with “Tavo akys” and finished 16th in the Grand Final in Basel. Different year, different energy, same Lithuanian tradition of taking Eurovision seriously enough to be dangerous.

Now the only question is what version of Lion Ceccah turns up in Vienna: the polished winner, or the one who’s about to get six extra layers of staging and a camera director yelling “MORE EMOTION” from the shadows. Either way, Lithuania has chosen, and the public made sure the choice actually stuck.