"Vienna Calling – Who sings for Austria?": JJ and Eric Papilaya instead of Luca Hänni and Elton
Weather-related change in the panel of commentators for today's ESC preliminary decision "Vienna Calling – Who sings for Austria?": As the snow chaos and the associated widespread flight delays have made it impossible for Luca Hänni and Elton to travel to the event, ESC winner JJ and ESC participant Eric Papilaya are stepping in and, together with Caroline Athanasiadis, will be helping the TV audience with the difficult decision of who should represent Austria at the ESC 2026. The task of the panel remains the same: the three do not award points but are absolutely confident in their knowledge of the Song Contest and offer entertaining breakdowns of the performances, expertise, fun facts, and much more.
Both expressed their regret in Instagram posts and wish ORF and all twelve acts the best of luck. Elton: „Such a shame, such a shame. Best of luck to all of the participants and have a great evening. May the right person represent Austria.“ And Luca Hänni: „Big sorry, I was really looking forward to it. I wish you all a great preliminary decision.“
The tension is certainly rising – in just a few hours, the big question "Vienna Calling – Who sings for Austria?" will be answered when twelve acts present their songs for the 70th Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna live on ORF 1 and ORF ON today, Friday, February 20, 2026, at 8:15 PM. Then it will be up to the internationally and nationally composed expert jury and the audience to be convinced, in order to secure the ticket to the largest music competition in the world at the first national preliminary round since 2016.
(February 20, 2026)