Lied van Liedjes 39

This was the thirty-ninth Lied van Liedjes to be held. The contest would be held in Porto, Portugal, following their victory at the previous contest with winning song, "TBD" by TBD. The Semi-Finals would occur on Tuesday 23 September 2003 and Thursday 25 September 2003. The Grand Final would take place on Saturday 27 September 2003.

Lucia Danielsen returned as executive producer, alongside the director Eila Kekkonen. Marissa Henriques returned as coordinator from the 25th contest. Porto was confirmed as the host city following Lisbon pulling their bid. Lisbon had previously hosted the previous Portuguese contest. Casa da Música (Music House) was chosen as the most suitable venue before the pot draw.

It was announced that following the 39th edition, the director Eila Kekkonen would step down from the position after holding it since the 25th edition. Lucia Danielsen stated however that she would continue in the role for the foreseeable future.

42 countries participated in the contest. Bosnia and Herzegovina, after previously withdrawing from the 38th contest held in Croatia, stated their intention to return for the 39th edition. However, they decided not to return after conflicts with the broadcaster arose. Albania considered a return but also didn't commit to returning immediately. Many believed that the inclusion of Kazakhstan and Morocco would be short-lived one edition participants, but to many surprises, they appeared on the final list of participants for the contest. Australia also remained in the contest.

In terms of changes, Luxembourg and San Marino both withdraw after a single edition returning due to financial issues. Hungary returned to the contest - their previous participation was in the 35th edition. Furthermore, Georgia returned after their brief absence from the previous edition; Armenia returned after their previous participation in the 35th edition. and Azerbaijan returned after their previous participation in the 36th edition. Notably, Turkey did not return. Belarus returned, they last participated in the 34th edition. There were two more withdrawals. Northern Ireland withdraw and maintained the deal with the Republic of Ireland to consider artists from both nations. They withdrew due to financial problems and pressure at the broadcaster. Italy was a surprise withdrawal which came as result of a dispute with the Lied van Liedjes producers.

Pot Draw
Italics indicate a returning country.

Semi Final 1
and would vote in this Semi Final. It took place on Tuesday 25 November 2003.

Semi Final 2
,, and would vote in this Semi-Final. It took place on Thursday 27 November 2003.

America