Four countries have announced that they will boycott the 2026 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest over Israel’s continued participation.
Ireland, Spain, Slovenia and the Netherlands have all confirmed that they will no longer take part in next year’s edition of the big song-fest in protest over the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
The four countries had hoped that the General Assembly of Eurovision organiser the European Broadcasting Union would include a specific vote on whether or not Israel could continue to participate. However, in the end, no such vote took place, meaning Israel is cleared to take part.
That prompted Irish broadcaster RTÉ to put out a statement insisting that Ireland’s participation in Eurovision next year would be “unconscionable” given “the appalling loss of lives in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there, which continues to put the lives of so many civilians at risk”.
Spanish broadcaster RTVE added in its own statement, “the EBU presidency has denied RTVE’s request for a specific vote on Israel’s participation. This decision increases RTVE’s distrust of the festival’s organisation and confirms the political pressure surrounding it”.
Broadcasters in eight countries had requested a secret ballot on Israel’s participation. Instead, participating broadcasters were asked to vote on new rules that aim to discourage governments from running promotions that seek to sway Eurovision voters elsewhere in Europe, after allegations Israel unfairly boosted its 2025 entrant.
Spain is one of the “big five” countries that have traditionally provided the bulk of the money that funds EBU’s staging of Eurovision, alongside Germany, France, Italy and the UK, with entrants from those countries skipping the semi-final stage of the competition as a result.
The debate over Israel’s participation has caused a significant rift amongst the countries that participate in Eurovision, including within the big five.
In Germany, a number of prominent politicians had actually proposed that - if Israel was banned from taking part - German broadcaster SWR should boycott the competition. Meanwhile Austrian broadcaster ORF, which will host the 2026 contest, has also supported Israel’s continued involvement.
In the UK, meanwhile, the BBC has said it “supports the collective decision made by members of the EBU” to embrace the nominal rule changes and not specifically vote on Israel’s participation. “This is about enforcing the rules of the EBU and being inclusive”, a spokesperson added.
Despite key funders like the BBC and SWR still being very much on board, the boycotts by Ireland, Spain, Slovenia and the Netherlands will help ensure that the ever-present geopolitics that bubble behind the scenes at Eurovision will again break into full view and dominate next year’s proceedings.
And it seems certain that those artists who do take part will come under significant pressure to either pull out or speak up in support of Palestine.
But that didn’t stop the EBU putting out a rather optimistic statement yesterday declaring that the “meaningful changes” made to Eurovision rules during its General Assembly will ensure that the Song Contest “remains a place for unity and cultural exchange”.
