No big names, new acts, or guests: Sanremo 2026 has very little space for Sardinia, at least according to what's been announced so far. The only traces of the island's influence on the stage are brought by Francesco Renga, originally from Tula, one of the thirty competing singers.
Sardinia's history at the Festival is long and varied. It began in 1958: Sardinian Gianni Agus, a "superior sidekick" to comedians like Totò and Paolo Villaggio, presented the award for Domenico Modugno's "Nel blu dipinto di blu," which would become the most famous Italian song of all time. The first competing entry arrived seven years later, in 1965, with 23-year-old Vittorio Inzaina, a bricklayer from Telti, and the Malagasy group Les Surfs.
In 1968, Marisa Sannia made her debut: just 21 years old, born in Iglesias and raised in Cagliari, a former basketball champion, paired with Ornella Vanoni, she enchanted with "Casa Bianca," written by Don Backy. Pietro Germi would use it as the soundtrack for "Alfredo Alfredo." She returned to the Festival three more times until 1984, always with her signature style of a woman, above all, a free woman.
In 1970, Gallura's Angelo Sotgiu of Ricchi e Poveri, along with Angela Brambati, Franco Gatti, and Marina Occhiena, debuted with "La Prima Cosa Bella" and won in 1985 with "Se M'innamoro." In 1977, Collage from Olbia (Masino Usai, Piero Pischedda, Pino Ambrosio, Tore Fazzi, and Piero Fazzi) entered the competition for the first of four times. Fiordaliso, whose father was from Quartu, participated nine times, while Ivan Graziani, whose mother was from Alghero, twice. In 1988, it was the turn of Ice from Sassari (Andrea Desole, Massimo Cossu, Uccio Soro, Giancarlo Longoni, and Paolo Zannin): in the Newcomers section, they performed "Mama," the first song in limba of the Festival, written by Piero Marras.
In 1991, Tazenda (Andrea Parodi, Gino Marielli, and Gigi Camedda) joined forces: "Disamparados," featuring Pierangelo Bertoli, became "Spunta la luna dal monte" and won the Targa Tenco award. In 1992, they returned to the Ariston Theatre with "Pitzinnos in sa gherra" (featuring Fabrizio De André).
In 1993, a Sardinian artist was among the Newcomers: alongside Laura Pausini, who won with "La solitudine," was Maria Grazia Impero, from Calangianus, with "Tu con la mia amica." In 2001, Isola Song (Tore Melis, Rocco Melis, Giuseppe Melis, and Massimiliano Podda) attempted, and four years later, Renga won by a landslide with "Angelo."
And here we are with the golden two-year period for the island: in 2009, Cagliari native Marco Carta, fresh from Amici, triumphed with "La forza mia," which spent six weeks in the Top Singles chart (with lyrics and music by Laura Pausini's now husband, Paolo Carta). The baton passed the following year to "Per tutte le volte che..." by La Maddalena native Valerio Scanu, who placed second at Amici. The song was certified platinum, with over 30,000 digital sales.
In 2013, Ilaria Porceddu from Assemini came in second among the Young Artists with "In equilibrio," while Bianca Atzei, originally from Siamanna, won two Festivals, in 2015 and 2017. That same year , Alice Paba, grandparents from Aritzo, also participated, along with Neslie with the song "Do retta a te." In 2019, Federica Carta , relatives from Bonorva, participated with Shade, and Karim Qqru, aka Gianpaolo Cuccuru, drummer of Zen Circus : his mother was born in Pattada, his father is from Pozzomaggiore.
Finally , Mahmood, a native of Orosei : in 2019 he took first place with "Soldi," in 2022 he repeated the feat with Blanco, and in 2024 "Tuta Gold" became the most streamed song on Spotify. His duet with the Tenores di Bitti in Lucio Dalla's masterpiece "Com'è profondo il mare" is now a thing of the past. And among the duets, Salmo with Shari in 2023 is worth remembering, while the following year, among the big names is the frontman of the Santi Francesi, Alessandro De Santis , originally from Orosei, with a mamuthone tattooed on his arm.
Finally, a brief overview of those who have co-hosted Sanremo: last year, Mahmood with Geppi Cucciari, in 2011, Elisabetta Canalis, and in 1997, Valeria Marini. Last but not least: Dany Cabras at the Prima Festival in 2024 , complete with a gag involving carasau bread. This year, unfortunately, it's just a memory.