The song was written and produced by his sister Luísa Sobral and released for digital download as a single on 10 March 2017 by Sons em Trânsito.

It is included in the European Union Songbook as the all-time top Portuguese love song, and it is listed in the Guinness World Records.

It amassed 758 points, setting the record for the highest score in the history of the competition, and is the only entry to top both the televoting and jury voting in the second half of the 2010s.

Salvador Sobral performed the song alone on stage B, close to the audience, while the background LED screens displayed an enchanted forest.

[1] Salvador Sobral stated that even though "Amar pelos dois" was created by Luísa, she gave him freedom to perform the song according to his artistic personality.

Sobral stated that "Amar pelos dois" is "influenced by those old songs from the Great American Songbook, and it also has a touch of the beautiful bossa nova melodies".

[7] The song's lyrical theme is heartbreak after a breakup:[8] "Meu bem / Ouve as minhas preces / Peço que regresses / Que me voltes a querer".

[9] Francisco Chacón of ABC noted that the song's jazz-pop tempo distinguished it from the "outlandish proposals in the otherwise kitsch music scene".

[10] The staff of Paris Match listed the song as one of their ten favourite entries of 2017, and noted a "great vocal mastery".

It marked the first time since Sweden's "Euphoria" (2012) that a Eurovision Song Contest winning entry also topped the ESC Radio Awards poll.

[33] Salvador and Luísa Sobral, the latter of which composed "Amar pelos dois", first appeared on radio stations RFM and Rádio Comercial on 8 and 14 March 2017, respectively.

[48] On 5 December 2016, Luísa Sobral was announced as a participating songwriter of Festival da Canção 2017, Portugal's national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2017.

Luís Figueiredo, who did the string arrangement, also chose "Amar pelos dois" as the song to go through the competition's various phases.

Salvador Sobral competed in the first semi-final on 19 February 2017, placing second with 20 points after winning the jury vote and coming third in the televote.

[51] In the final, held on 5 March of that year, he won the jury vote and came second in the televote, placing first overall with 22 points, becoming the Portuguese representative at the Eurovision Song Contest 2017.

[52][53] The Eurovision Song Contest 2017 took place at the International Exhibition Centre in Kyiv, Ukraine, and consisted of two semi-finals on 9 and 11 May, followed by the final on 13 May 2017.

[66] "Amar pelos dois" is included in the European Union Songbook as the all-time top Portuguese love song.

[77] The track generated a two-part television documentary titled Sem Fazer Planos do Que Virá Depois and aired by Portuguese broadcaster RTP.

[84] Arisa, winner of the Sanremo Music Festival 2014, recorded an Italian-language version for her 2019 album Una nuova Rosalba in città.

[85][86] Tiziana Tosca Donati, winner of the Sanremo Music Festival 1996, recorded an Italian-language version for her 2019 album Morabeza.

[88] Several Eurovision Song Contest participants have performed "Amar pelos dois", including Nathan Trent (Austria 2017),[89][90] Selma Björnsdóttir (Iceland 1999 and 2005),[91] Lea Sirk (Slovenia 2018),[92] Laura Groeseneken (Belgium 2018),[93] Cezar (Romania 2013),[94][95] Alfred García (Spain 2018),[96] winner Marie Myriam (France 1977),[97] Ari Ólafsson (Iceland 2018),[98] Madame Monsieur (France 2018),[99] Iriao (Georgia 2018),[100] Michael Schulte (Germany 2018),[101] Jelena Tomašević (Serbia 2008),[102] Jurijus Veklenko (Lithuania 2019),[103] Serafín Zubiri (Spain 1992 and 2000),[104] Blas Cantó (Spain 2021),[105] Barbara Pravi (France 2021),[106] Yovanna (Switzerland 1965),[107] Brunette (Armenia 2023).

[108] In a tribute at the Eurovision Song Contest 2018, several 2017 contestants sang a portion of the song: Svala (Iceland), Manel Navarro (Spain), Norma John (Finland), Alma (France), Kristian Kostov (Bulgaria), Martina Bárta (Czech Republic), and Blanche (Belgium).

[109] In 2017, Dutch singer Jim van der Zee, winner of the eighth season of singing competition The Voice of Holland, covered the song in English language.