Fortuna Music Contest 6

Fortuna Music Contest 6, often referred to as FMC #06, was the sixth edition of the Fortuna Music Contest. The contest took place in Odessa, Ukraine. It was the first time that Ukraine had hosted the contest, following the country's victory in the fifth edition with the song "Tantsue Garza" by Garza. Organised by the host broadcaster Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine, the contest was held at the Chornomorets Stadium, and consisted only of the final, which was hosted by Volodymyr Ostapchuk.

Twenty-two countries participated in the sixth edition. Belgium and Morocco debuted, while Canada, Spain and United Kingdom had to withdraw. The winner of the edition was South Africa with the song "Reassemble Myself" performed by Mila Smith, which scored 99 points, two points over the runner-up, Greece. The top five also included South Korea, Germany and Morocco. The host nation Ukraine finished twenty-first.

Location
For more details on the host country, see Ukraine.

Host City
Odessa is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrative centre of the Odessa Raion and Odessa Oblast, as well a multiethnic cultural centre. Odessa is sometimes called the "pearl of the Black Sea", the "South Capital" (under the Russian Empire and Soviet Union), "The Humour Capital" and "Southern Palmyra". The population in 2021 was 1,015,826 (2021 est.).

Long before the Tsarist establishment of Odessa, an ancient Greek settlement existed at its location. A more recent Tatar settlement was also founded at the location by Hacı I Giray, the Khan of Crimea, in 1440 and was named Hacibey (or Khadjibey) after him. After a period of Lithuanian Grand Duchy control, Hacibey and surroundings became part of the domain of the Ottomans in 1529 and remained there until the empire's defeat in the Russo-Turkish War of 1792. In 1794, the city of Odessa was founded by a decree of the Russian empress Catherine the Great. From 1819 to 1858, Odessa was a free port—a porto-Franco. During the Soviet period, it was the most important trading port in the Soviet Union and a Soviet naval base. In 2000, the Quarantine Pier at Odessa Commercial Sea Port was declared a free port and free economic zone for a period of 25 years. During the 19th century, Odessa was the fourth largest city of Imperial Russia, after Moscow, Saint Petersburg and Warsaw. Its historical architecture has a style more Mediterranean than Russian, having been heavily influenced by French and Italian styles. Some buildings are built in a mixture of different styles, including Art Nouveau, Renaissance and Classicist.

Odessa is a warm-water port. The city of Odessa hosts both the Port of Odessa and Port Yuzhne, a significant oil terminal situated in the city's suburbs. Another notable port, Chornomorsk, is located in the same oblast, to the south-west of Odessa. Together they represent a major transport hub integrating with railways. Odessa's oil and chemical processing facilities are connected to the Russian and other European networks by strategic pipelines. Before the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine the city was a major tourism centre.

Venue
The Chornomorets Stadium is a football stadium built in 2011 in Odessa, Ukraine. The stadium has a capacity of 34,164 and is the home of FC Chornomorets Odesa. The inaugural match, between FC Chornomorets Odesa and FC Karpaty Lviv, was played on 19 November 2011, and ended with a 2–2 draw. The first goal was scored by Vitaliy Balashov in the 46th minute from a penalty. The stadium was constructed on the site of the old Soviet multi-use Central Stadium of the Black Sea Shipping Company (ChMP), which was demolished in 2009. The venue was considered to be one of the stadiums of UEFA Euro 2012 but failed to be nominated as such.

Returning artists
One returning artist were present in the Fortuna Music Contest 6. Former winner Sophie and the Giants returned this time for Germany, last time they won for United Kingdom in the Fortuna Music Contest 2.

Final
Twenty-two countries participated in the final, with all participating countries eligible to vote.