The 2005 contest was seen by many as an open competition with fans and pundits divided over which country would win. The 2005 contest saw many previous participants return to the stage. Helena Paparizou, who represented Greece as part of the group Antique, returned to the contest with the song My Number One. Chiara, who finished third for Malta in 1998, returned to the contest as did Constantinos Christoforou who represented Cyprus in 1996 and in 2002 as part of the group One. Annabel Conde, who represented Spain in 1995 was a backing singer for Andorra and Selma who finished second for Iceland in 1999, failed to qualify from the Semi-Final with her song If I Had Your Love.
