Eurovision 2026 crisis: Israel kept in

Israel has been given the green light to participate in next year’s Eurovision Song Contest, amid calls for exclusion from the country due to the war in Gaza and allegations that the vote in this year’s contest was manipulated in favor of the Israeli candidate.

At general assembly of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU)which organizes the competition, “a large majority of members agreed that there was no need for a new vote on participation and that the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 should go ahead as planned, with additional safeguards in place”, according to the organization.

Indeed, instead of a vote on Israel’s participation, members from 37 countries were asked to vote by secret ballot on whether they were satisfied with Israel’s participation. new rules announced last month. 65 percent of delegates voted in favor of the changes, while 23 percent voted against and 10 percent abstained.

Supporters of the changes include broadcasters in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark, all of whom said they would continue to support the song contest.

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Austrian broadcaster ORF said it was happy with the decision and hopes to be able to host the event next year.

Roland Weissman, ORF’s director general, said the competition “is a competition for broadcasters, not governments,” and that he personally advocated for Israel’s participation.

“In the spirit of fostering cultural dialogue and supporting and strengthening the democratic role of public broadcasters, it is important not to burn any bridges,” he said, adding that the concerns raised by some members had been taken “very seriously”.

Reacting to the EBU’s decision, Israeli President Isaac Herzog posted on

However, the decision to keep Israel on next year’s program has led – for now – to four countries withdrawing from Eurovision 2026.

Who won’t participate in Eurovision 2026… for now?

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Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Spain are ready to boycott Eurovision next year. The countries’ broadcasters immediately issued statements saying they would not take part in the 2026 competition following yesterday’s EBU general assembly.

Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS said it “concludes that, in the current circumstances, participation cannot be reconciled with the public values ​​that are fundamental to our organization.”

Added CEO Taco Zimmerman: “Culture unites, but not at any cost. What has happened over the past year has tested the limits of what we can stand for.”

Slovenian channel RTVSLO said participating “would contradict its values ​​of peace, equality and respect” and that it was withdrawing from the competition “in the name of the 20,000 dead children in Gaza.”

In her speech to members before the decision, Natalija Gorscak, chair of the RTVSLO board of directors, said: “For the third year in a row, the public has demanded that we say no to the participation of any country that attacks another country.

The Irish channel RTÉ responded to the decision saying: “RTÉ believes that Ireland’s participation remains unacceptable given the appalling loss of life in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there, which continues to put the lives of so many civilians at risk.

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The Spanish channel RTVE said it would not broadcast either the competition or the semi-finals and criticized the decision-making process as “insufficient”. According to them, the EBU’s decision “increases RTVE’s distrust of the organization of the festival and confirms the political pressure surrounding it.”

The boycott was supported by the country’s Minister of Culture, Ernest Urtasun, who declared himself “proud of an RTVE which places human rights above all economic interests”.

This will be the first time that Spain has been absent from the contest since 1961 and its absence will have the biggest impact on Eurovision, as Spain is one of the “Big Five”, the group that contributes the most to the organization of the contest, which also includes France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom.

Germany has already declared that it would not participate in Eurovision 2026 if Israel was excludedwhile France confirmed his participation despite everything earlier this year.

The BBC announced it would broadcast the competition next year, saying it supported “the collective decision taken by EBU members.”

What happens next?

The competition is facing a crisis and the refusal of a real vote on Israel’s participation has sparked further chaos.

“Eurovision is becoming a bit of a fractured event,” said Paul Jordan, a Eurovision expert with a doctorate on the contest. “The slogan is ‘United through music’…Unfortunately, politics is dividing unity.”

“It has become quite a complicated and toxic situation,” he added before the general assembly.

Some broadcasters have yet to make a statement following yesterday’s decision. Iceland’s RÚV, which previously agreed to a motion recommending Israel’s expulsion, said it would not make a final decision on its participation until next week.

It remains to be seen whether other broadcasters will join the boycott of Eurovision 2026 by Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland and Slovenia. Members have until mid-December to confirm their participation next year, and a final list will be announced by Christmas.

One thing is certain: after two divisive competitions due to Israel’s participation, there is a very real risk that audience numbers will decline for the 2026 show.

Calls have already been made for a global boycott of next year’s competition, with many netizens expressing dismay and anger at Israel’s continued inclusion in the list of participants. The EBU’s decision could fuel further protests, exposing what some say is a blatant display of hypocrisy by the organization.

Indeed, the competition prides itself on maintaining political neutrality, positioning itself as a celebration of music rather than politics. However, the EBU banned Russia in 2022, just days after the invasion of Ukraine. Why should Israel be any different?

Next year’s contest, which will be the 70th Eurovision, will take place in Austria from May 12 to 16. Are you going to watch?