Prior to the 2016 contest, the Netherlands had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest fifty-six times since their début as one of seven countries to take part in the inaugural contest in . Since then, the country has won the contest four times: in with the song "Net als toen" performed by Corry Brokken; in with the song "'n Beetje" performed by Teddy Scholten; in as one of four countries to tie for first place with "De troubadour" performed by Lenny Kuhr; and finally in with "Ding-a-Dong" performed by the group Teach-In. Following the introduction of semi-finals for the 2004 contest, the Netherlands had featured in only three finals. The Dutch least successful result has been last place, which they have achieved on five occasions, most recently in the second semi-final of the 2011 contest. The Netherlands has also received "nul points" on two occasions; in and .