# Canonical recap data for Eurovision Song Contest Inaugural Edition (1956)
# Source: https://recap.at/1956/eurovision-1956
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: eurovision-1956
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1956/eurovision-1956"
title: Eurovision Song Contest Inaugural Edition
subtitle: Seven nations competed in Lugano for the first Eurovision, establishing a Cold War-era soft-power ritual that would reshape European cultural diplomacy.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1956-01-01
datePrecision: year
year: 1956
decade: 1950
country:
name: Switzerland
slug: switzerland
summaryShort: The Eurovision Song Contest, often known simply as Eurovision, is an international song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) since 1956. Each participating broadcaster submits an original song representing its country to be performed live via the Eurovision and Euroradio networks, and
summaryLong: The Eurovision Song Contest, often known simply as Eurovision, is an international song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) since 1956. Each participating broadcaster submits an original song representing its country to be performed live via the Eurovision and Euroradio networks, and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine a winner.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/87/Eurovision_Song_Contest_2025.svg/330px-Eurovision_Song_Contest_2025.svg.png"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Eurovision Song Contest"
importance: 72
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts: []
timeline: []
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurovision_Song_Contest"
  title: Eurovision Song Contest
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
categories:
- festival
- award
metaDescription: "The Eurovision Song Contest, often known simply as Eurovision, is an international song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) "
wikidataQid: Q276
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260703190904/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurovision_Song_Contest"
  capturedAt: 2026-07-03
  label: Eurovision Song Contest
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurovision_Song_Contest"
