Prior to the 2017 Contest , Italy had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest forty-two times since its first entry during the inaugural contest in 1956 . Since then , Italy has won the contest on two occasions : in 1964 with the song " Non ho l'età " performed by Gigliola Cinquetti and in 1990 with the song " Insieme : 1992 " performed by Toto Cutugno . Italy has withdrawn from the Eurovision Song Contest a number of times with their most recent absence spanning from 1998 until 2010 . Their return in 2011 with the song " Madness of Love " , performed by Raphael Gualazzi , placed second — their highest result , to this point , since their victory in 1990 . In 2016 , Francesca Michielin represented the nation with the song " No Degree of Separation " , placing sixteenth with 124 points
Insieme : 1992
Insieme: 1992
Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017