Four nations to boycott Eurovision 2026 over Israel’s participation

A quartet of European nations — Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Spain — has announced they will bow out of the Eurovision Song Contest 2026, withdrawing their voices from the famed musical spectacle in protest against the decision to allow Israel to compete, the Al Jazeera reported.

Their declaration of boycott arrived swiftly on Thursday, moments after the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) confirmed that there would be no vote on excluding Israel, despite fervent appeals from several member states.

Israel’s participation, long a point of contention, has drawn fierce criticism amid accusations of conducting a genocidal war in Gaza — a conflict that has claimed at least 70,125 Palestinian lives — and for allegedly manipulating last year’s contest to strengthen its own entrant’s chances.

Issuing a statement that effectively cleared Israel’s path to the 2026 stage, the EBU said its members had expressed “clear support” for reforms meant to “reinforce trust and protect [the] neutrality” of the event. Among the changes is the revival of an expanded professional jury during the semifinals — a measure designed to prevent governments or outside actors from unduly influencing the popular vote, the Al Jazeera reported.

But for some broadcasters, these assurances were far from sufficient.

The Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS declared that participation had become incompatible with the “public values” its institution stands upon. It accused Israel of “proven interference” in last year’s contest and condemned what it described as a “serious violation of press freedom” during the Gaza war.

Ireland’s national broadcaster, RTÉ, also stepped away from the Vienna-hosted 70th edition of Eurovision, citing “the appalling loss of lives in Gaza and humanitarian crisis” as its moral line. Slovenia followed suit, with its broadcaster saying the boycott was undertaken “on behalf of the 20,000 children who died in Gaza.”

Spain’s public broadcaster RTVE joined the chorus, emphasising that even amid a ceasefire and an approved peace process, the “use of the contest for political goals by Israel” had made it ever harder to uphold Eurovision’s aspiration of being a neutral cultural celebration.

Yet Europe does not speak with one voice. Germany takes a markedly different stance, insisting it would walk away only if Israel were barred from the contest. “Israel belongs in the Eurovision Song Contest,” German culture minister Wolfram Weimer asserts.

Israel, for its part, hailed the EBU decision. President Isaac Herzog, asserting that Israel faces a worldwide campaign of defamation, said his nation “deserves to be represented on every stage around the world.”