By Mark Savage, Music Correspondent
Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands and Slovenia have announced they will boycott the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest after the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) confirmed Israel may take part.
Those public broadcasters were among several that had urged organisers to exclude Israel because of the war in Gaza and amid allegations of improper voting around last year’s contest. Spain’s public broadcaster, RTVE, had sought a secret ballot on the question at an EBU meeting in Geneva; it says that request was refused and that the outcome has deepened its mistrust of how the contest is run. Ireland’s RTÉ described taking part as “unconscionable” while the humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues.
Spain is one of Eurovision’s so-called “Big Five” — together with France, Germany, Italy and the UK — whose broadcasters make larger EBU contributions and whose acts automatically qualify for the final. Around 50 member broadcasters, including the BBC, attended the Geneva talks, which focused on the future of a contest watched by roughly 150 million people each year.
Delegates were asked to back new rules intended to deter governments or outside groups from orchestrating voting campaigns after claims that Israel had unfairly boosted its 2025 entrant, Yuval Raphael. BBC News understands approval of those measures was linked to a clause preventing a separate vote on Israel’s 2026 participation. The EBU said members who accept the new rules and wish to take part will be eligible for Eurovision 2026.
EBU and contest officials said members had a chance to discuss Israel’s involvement at length. The director of the Eurovision Song Contest described the debate as honest and moving and said the strong result reflected a desire to keep the event politically neutral.
Israeli officials welcomed the decision. President Isaac Herzog called it a gesture of solidarity and cooperation, while the CEO of Israel’s broadcaster KAN warned that attempts to bar the country amounted to a cultural boycott and could set a worrying precedent.
The BBC backed the collective EBU decision, framing it as consistent with the union’s rules and commitment to inclusivity.
But the ruling has exposed deep divisions across the Eurovision community. Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS said participation under the present circumstances conflicts with its public values. RTVE confirmed it had decided last September that it would withdraw if Israel were allowed to compete and said it will not broadcast the 2026 semi-finals or final. Slovenia’s national broadcaster said its stance has not changed and stressed it expects ethical consistency from all members. Belgium said it would announce its position in the coming days.
Some members supported the EBU’s approach. Nordic broadcasters from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Iceland issued a joint statement backing the move to address voting shortcomings, though Iceland’s RÚV said it would delay a final decision about participation until the following week.
Germany, which had warned it might quit if Israel were excluded, welcomed the outcome. ARD said it looks forward to taking part in 2026, describing Eurovision as a celebration of cultural diversity and solidarity while expressing regret over some broadcasters’ withdrawals and respecting their choices.
The dispute follows the 2025 contest in Basel, where Israel’s entrant Yuval Raphael — a survivor of the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack — was involved in controversy over voting, and Austria’s JJ ultimately won. The tensions over alleged voting manipulation and the wider political sensitivities around the Gaza war have intensified long-running questions about Eurovision’s neutrality and the role public broadcasters should play, as the contest approaches its 70th anniversary.