The Netherlands will be represented at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2026 with the song "Stronger Together", written by Mell Jonk and Ton Dijkman, and performed by Maria. The Dutch participating broadcaster, AVROTROS, organised the national final 2026 in order to select its entry for the contest.
Background
Prior to the 2026 contest, the Netherlands had participated in the contest twenty-two times since its first entry in the inaugural . Since then, the country has won the contest on one occasion in with the song "Click Clack" performed by Ralf Mackenbach. The Netherlands is the only country to have taken part in every edition of the contest. Since 2014, as the result of a merger between the AVROwhich had previously been in charge of the Netherlands' participation in the contestand TROS into the current AVROTROS, it is the latter who participates representing the Netherlands. In 2025, Meadow represented the Netherlands with the song "Freeze" and finished 10th with 93 points.
Before Junior Eurovision Junior Songfestival 2026 2026 was the twenty-third edition of , the national final format developed by AVROTROS to select Dutch entries for the Junior Eurovision Song Contest. The event was held on 19 September 2026 at the RTM Stage in Rotterdam.
Format The selection took place over four stages: in the first stage, an expert committee assessed the applications and selected 45 acts for an audition round, excerpts from which were published on the competition's official YouTube channel on 3 and 17 April, and 3 and 15 May 2026; the selected singers were then divided into four groups and attended a workshop with vocal coaches and choreographers, after which a number of artists advanced to the final audition, where a jury selected nine finalists, who were then divided into four acts and assigned original songs to record in a studio. At the final, the winner was determined by a combination of votes from an kids jury (traditionally made up of past participants), a professional jury (made up of industry professionals) and an online voteeach awarding sets of 8–10 and 12 pointswith the latter taking precedence in the event of a tie.
Competing entries The submission process for interested artists aged between nine and fourteen was open between 21 September 2025 and 25 January 2026. On 29 May 2026, AVROTROS announced the first group of finalists, with the remaining finalists announced on 5 June 2026. The acts were revealed on 12 June 2026, while the songs were released daily between 7 and 10 July 2026. ArtistSongSongwriter(s) Maria "Stronger Together" Nolan"Crush" The Crossovers"Crossovers"Willem Laseroms Vajèn "Here I Am"
Final The final took place on 19 September 2026. The kids jury panel consisted of 2025 participants Level Up and Meadow, while the professional jury panelthe members of which also provided feedback in regards to the performances during the showconsisted of singers , Berget Lewis, and DJ duo Kris Kross Amsterdam. In addition to the competing entries, the finalists performed a common song titled "Make It Happen" and a promotional song for the anti-bullying campaign titled "Stop Right Now". Nine-year-old Maria was declared the winner with the song "Stronger Together". +Final19 September 2026ArtistSongKids juryOnline voteTotalPlace1Nolan"Crush"810102842Vajèn"Here I Am"12982933The Crossovers"Crossovers"98122924Maria"Stronger Together"10129311
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