What’s Going on With Eurovision?
When Eurovision arrives next year in Vienna, there will be fewer countries than usual vying for the top spot in what is historically a fun and campy song contest. In the past week, five countries have pulled out of Eurovision 2026 as part of a boycott over Israel’s inclusion in the competition. Since the war in Gaza began two years ago every year’s Eurovision has featured protests over Israel’s participation, but those have mostly come from people outside the building or audience members. Now, the actual participants are getting involved. Here’s what’s happened so far.
What countries have pulled out of Eurovision 2026?
Last week, public broadcasters in Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands, and Slovenia announced that they would not be participating in Eurovision after the European Broadcasting Union — the organization that runs the show — decided to allow Israel’s continued participation. The countries pulled out after the EBU declined to hold a vote on Israel’s spot in the contest, instead opting only to institute new rules that prohibit governments and third parties from influencing voters (which Israel was accused of doing last year).
“A large majority of members agreed that there was no need for a further vote on participation and that the Eurovision song contest 2026 should proceed as planned, with the additional safeguards in place,” the EBU said in a statement.
RTÉ, the Irish national broadcaster, slammed the EBU in a statement while announcing its departure from the competition, saying that “Ireland’s participation remains 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.”
The Spanish broadcaster RTVE said in its own statement that it, along with seven other countries, had requested a specific vote on Israel but was denied by the EBU. “This decision increases RTVE’s distrust of the festival’s organisation and confirms the political pressure surrounding it,” it said.
On Wednesday, hours before the deadline for broadcasters to confirm their participation, Iceland’s national broadcaster RÚV decided to pull out of the contest, too. “There is no peace or joy connected to this contest as things stand now. On that basis, first and foremost, we are stepping back while the situation is as it is,” Stefan Eiriksson, director general of RÚV, said in a statement. Due to the deadline, it looks like Iceland is the last country officially removing itself from the 2026 competition.
What does Eurovision have to say about all of this?
Not much, if you can believe it. “We respect the decision of all broadcasters who have chosen not to participate in next year’s Eurovision Song Contest and hope to welcome them back soon,” Eurovision director Martin Green told the BBC following Iceland’s announcement.
Clearly, Eurovision is going with a nothing-to-see-here attitude, but it’s unclear if that will work. The current dustup comes after years of protests surrounding Israel’s involvement in Eurovision. In 2024, protestors in the crowd booed and shouted “Free Palestine” during Israel’s performance. The Intercept later reported that Eurovision had muted the crowd for the broadcast. Last year, over 70 former contestants signed an open letter calling for Israel and its national broadcaster KAN to be banned from the contest. At the time, the EBU issued a statement saying that it “remains aligned with other international organisations that have similarly maintained their inclusive stance towards Israeli participants in major competitions at this time.”
Who else is boycotting Eurovision?
On Thursday, 2024 Eurovision winner Nemo, the first nonbinary performer to represent Switzerland, announced that they would be returning their trophy to EBU headquarters. “Eurovision says it stands for unity, inclusion, and dignity for all. Those values made this contest meaningful to me,” they wrote in a statement on Instagram. “But Israel’s continued participation, during what the UN’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry has concluded to be a genocide, shows a clear conflict between those ideals and the decisions made by the EBU.”
In the comments, Nemo received support from fellow former Eurovision contestants, including Greece’s Marina Satti and Portugal’s Iolanda.
For now, this seems to be the extent of the backlash. Things will surely ramp up again in May when Israel takes the stage at what is intended to be a celebration of the competition’s 70th anniversary. We’ll circle back then and see how that’s going for them.
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