Prior to the 2017 Contest , Switzerland had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest fifty-seven times since its first entry in 1956 . Switzerland is noted for having won the first edition of the Eurovision Song Contest with the song " Refrain " performed by Lys Assia . Their second and , to this point , most recent victory was achieved in 1988 when Canadian singer Céline Dion won the contest with the song " Ne partez pas sans moi " . Following the introduction of semi-finals for the , Switzerland had managed to participate in the final four times up to this point . In 2005 , the internal selection of Estonian girl band Vanilla Ninja , performing the song " Cool Vibes " , qualified Switzerland to the final where they placed 8th . Due to their successful result in 2005 , Switzerland was pre-qualified to compete directly in the final in 2006 . Between 2007 and 2010 , the nation failed to qualify to the final after a string of internal selections . Since opting to organize a national final from 2011 onwards , Switzerland has managed to qualify to the final twice . In 2016 , Switzerland failed to qualify to the final , placing last in the semi-final with the song " The Last of Our Kind " performed by Rykka
first edition
Eurovision Song Contest 1956
Switzerland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017