Eurovision contest winner, DARA, turns Sofia airport into a stage: 'Dream big, work hard, and your effort will pay off'

DARA spoke at her first press conference on home soil after returning from Vienna, following her victory at the Eurovision Song Contest.

She encouraged fans and viewers with a motivational message:

“Believe that you can achieve anything, dream big, work hard, and your effort will pay off.”
The Bulgarian singer triumphed in the 70th edition of the contest the night before, marking a historic moment for Bulgaria.

Incredible success for Bulgaria as DARA wins Eurovision 2026 with the song 'Bangaranga'

A sea of fans waving the national flag welcomed DARA at Sofia Airport “Vasil Levski”, after her return to Bulgaria following her success at the Eurovision Song Contest.

DARA greeted fans with an emotional message after her victory at the Eurovision Song Contest, thanking everyone for their support and calling for stronger backing of Bulgarian artists.

DARA: “Bangaranga to everyone. Hello, I love you very much, thank you all for being here! Thank you for your support! We have just done something very big for Bulgarian music and I hope this is a lesson for everyone — that we should support all performers and people who create music and art in Bulgaria, because we have so many talented people who have a lot to show, but they need your support and your love, so we can conquer the world! We are an extremely talented nation that will continue to receive more and more attention. Bangaranga!”

Photos by Dessislava Kulelieva, BNT

Milena Milotinova, Director General of BNT: “The whole world is talking about Bulgaria today. We are so happy that DARA and Bulgaria have won this competition, which has a 70-year history — and Bulgaria has won for the first time. We can do it! A person is as big as their dreams and as big as their achievements! Well done to DARA, to the BNT team, and to everyone involved in this great success, including producers and experts from abroad — from Greece, Scandinavia, and Romania.

Thank you to the whole team, and I want to tell you that we are going to host Eurovision next year. Next year we mark 20 years since Bulgaria joined the EU and we will host Eurovision. Isn’t that amazing? Thank you to all Bulgarians abroad who united to vote for DARA — this is a shared success for Bulgaria.”

DARA’s victory at the Eurovision Song Contest means that next year the competition will be held in Bulgaria.

From Vienna, the winner made a light-hearted appeal to the mayor of Sofia:

“Mayor, you need to prepare a nice red carpet for the guests — a big one.”

Vasil Terziev, Mayor of Sofia, responded positively, saying the city is excited about the opportunity and thanking DARA for creating “work for the municipality,” while expressing hope for more ambitious joint projects between institutions.

Evtim Miloshev, Minister of Culture, also confirmed that the Council of Ministers is ready to set up an organisational structure this week, involving all relevant institutions for the preparation of Eurovision 2027 in Bulgaria.