 Thirty @-@ seven countries participated ; this includes the return of Poland after a two @-@ year absence and Portugal after a one @-@ year absence . Overall , there were two fewer countries competing compared to the previous year , making thirty @-@ seven participants , the smallest number since 2006 . Bulgaria , Croatia , Cyprus and Serbia announced their withdrawal from the 2014 Contest . San Marino and Montenegro both qualified for the final for the first time . The winner was Conchita Wurst with the song " Rise Like a Phoenix " , written by Charley Mason , Joey Patulka , Ali Zuckowski , and Julian Maas for Austria . This was Austria 's first win in the competition since 1966 . Jokes made about Wurst had sparked controversy , whilst Russia were booed several times during the contest . The Netherlands and Sweden finished second and third respectively with the former achieving their best result since their victory in the 1975 Contest . Armenia finished fourth , which equals their best result to date , while Hungary finished fifth , achieving its best result since its fourth place in 1994 . Of the " Big Five " , only Ruth Lorenzo of Spain achieved a place in the top ten . 
