Ireland participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 after Radio Telefís Éireann (RTÉ) held a national final, Eurosong 2008, to select the Irish entry for the contest, held in Belgrade, Serbia. For 2008, RTÉ reverted to their multi-song multi-singer format that had previously been used to select the Irish entry at Eurovision. Six artists competed in the final, with the Irish public choosing the winner through televoting and SMS. Residents of Northern Ireland could also take part in the voting through televoting and SMS. The winner was Dustin the Turkey with the song "Irelande Douze Pointe". At Eurovision, he placed 15th in the semi-final, failing to qualify for the final of the contest.

Ireland first entered the Eurovision Song Contest in 1965 and has since entered a total of 41 entries up to 2007 with its 42nd contribution in 2008.

Ireland has won the contest seven times in total, with no other country beating or equalling that record. The country's first win came in their sixth entry, in 1970, with then-18-year-old Dana winning with "All Kinds of Everything". Ireland holds the record for being the only country to win the country three times in a row (in 1992, 1993 and 1994), as well as having the only three-times winner (Johnny Logan, who won in 1980 as a singer, 1987 as a singer-songwriter, and again in 1992 as a songwriter). In recent years, however, Ireland's impressive record at Eurovision has taken a turn, with only two Top 10 results during the 2000s, and Ireland's first last place finish in 2007.

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