Four countries back out of Eurovision 2026 amid ongoing boycott

2025, December 10

Europe

Last Thursday, the European Broadcasting Union confirmed Israel's participation in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026. In response, four countries, Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, and Slovenia withdrew from the 2026 contest, citing a "loss" of neutrality and the humanitarian impact due to the war in Gaza.

RTÉ, the broadcaster for Ireland, said that participating in the 2026 edition was "unconscionable" due to the "humanitarian crisis" in Gaza as well as the large number of deaths there. Taco Zimmerman, the chief executive of AVROTROS, the broadcaster for the Netherlands, stated that "Culture unites, but not at any price." José Pablo López, president of RTVE, Spain's broadcaster, opined that "what happened at the EBU Assembly confirms that Eurovision is not a song contest but a festival dominated by geopolitical interests." Natalija Gorščak, the president of Radiotelevizija Slovenija, Slovenia's broadcaster, said that Israel and Hamas' ceasefire agreement was "not a real" one due to ongoing casualties. Meanwhile, RÚV, the Icelandic broadcaster, contemplated if Iceland should participate in the 2026 contest.

According to Politico, the four withdrawals generated major turmoil; CNN noted Spain is a part of the "Big Five," comprising the five biggest financial generators of the competition. Newsweek reported that the withdrawals were the largest "upheaval" in the Eurovision Song Contest.

Furthermore, the broadcaster for Radiotelevizija Slovenija reported that they requested a secret vote along with Spain, the Netherlands, Montenegro, Turkey, Algeria, and Iceland, but the vote was not held. Instead, officials in Geneva passed new rules limiting governments from influencing the results of the contest. The officials also implemented a limit of 10 public votes "per payment method", which RTVE called "insufficient".

CNN and Rappler reported that some countries, namely Austria, the host of the Eurovision Song Contest in 2026, Germany, France, Britain, Portugal, and Sweden, supported the inclusion of Israel in the 2026 edition of the contest.

Golan Yochpaz, the chief executive of the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation, called it a "cultural boycott." Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar articulated his shame for countries boycotting the contest.

Ben Robertson from Eurovision fansite ESC Insight highlighted that "never in the history of the contest have we had such a vote, and such a split, between the member broadcasters of the European Broadcasting Union."

Israel reached second place, securing the largest public vote in Eurovision 2025 when Yuval Raphael performed New Day Will Rise. Riot police were deployed in Basel due to large protests by Palestinian demonstrators against Israel's participation. Due to Israel's broadcaster being part of the European Broadcasting Union, the country is eligible to compete in the competition.