Israel Allowed to Participate in Eurovision 2026, Several Countries Announce Boycott
Israel has been granted permission to participate in the upcoming Eurovision edition in Vienna in May, as a "large majority" of the members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) deemed it unnecessary to vote on the matter. This decision has immediately triggered boycott announcements from several countries.
Broadcasters from Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, and Slovenia have promptly declared that they will not participate in the 2026 edition, in light of criticism regarding the war in Gaza and the controversy surrounding the significant public support for Israeli contestants in previous editions.
More boycotts could be forthcoming, such as that from the Icelandic broadcaster RUV, which is expected to make a decision "on Wednesday." Broadcasters have only a few days to decide, as the final list of participants must be announced "before Christmas," according to the EBU. During the general assembly on Thursday in Geneva, "a large majority" of broadcasters agreed "not to hold a vote on Israel's participation," but they approved changes to the rules of the popular contest to "enhance trust, transparency, and neutrality of the event," stated the organization.
In response to the situation in Gaza, despite the ceasefire and the endorsement of the peace process, as well as Israel’s political use of the contest, RTVE’s Secretary General, Alfonso Morales, remarked that it is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain Eurovision as a culturally neutral event.
In Dublin, Irish public broadcaster RTE condemned the "horrific human losses in Gaza," while Dutch broadcaster Avrotros mentioned a "conflict" between its values and Israel's participation.
Israel, through its President Isaac Herzog, welcomed the EBU’s announcement, asserting that the country "deserves to be represented on all world stages." German Culture Minister Wolfram Weimer told Bild that "Israel is part of Eurovision just as Germany is part of Europe."
The German broadcaster SWR and its parent company, public broadcaster ARD, expressed congratulations on the announcement, as did Roland Weissmann, the director-general of Austrian public broadcaster ORF, host of the next contest, although he lamented the boycott by some channels.
Geopolitical Oppositions
This year, Israeli singer Yuval Raphael, a survivor of the October 7, 2023 attack, finished second in the contest, buoyed by public voting worldwide, as voting for one's own country is prohibited. In 2024, national juries largely snubbed Israel, but public voting propelled Israeli contestant Eden Golan to fifth place.
Israel has faced accusations of interference and political manipulation of the contest. Under pressure from boycott calls, the EBU announced on November 21 a modification of the contest’s rules and an intensification of efforts to "detect and prevent any fraudulent or coordinated voting activities."
The new measures, approved on Thursday, "strongly discourage any disproportionate promotional campaign (...), particularly if it is initiated or supported by third parties, including a government or government agency."
The contest allows residents from the dozens of participating countries to vote via phone, SMS, or online. In each country, a jury of professionals also votes, and both votes carry equal weight. However, with the new rules, the maximum number of votes per payment method will "decrease from 20 to 10."
The approval of the new measures by broadcasters "demonstrates our members' collective commitment to protecting transparency and trust in the Eurovision Song Contest, the largest live music event in the world," commented the EBU President and head of France Télévisions, Delphine Ernotte Cunci. Finnish, Danish, Swedish, and Norwegian broadcasters have also supported these measures.
Eurovision has frequently been a stage for geopolitical oppositions. Russia was excluded following its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, while Belarus was banned a year earlier after the contested reelection of President Alexander Lukashenko.