German Chancellor Friedrich Merz declared Sunday that Germany should withdraw from the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna if Israel is excluded from participation.
Speaking on public broadcaster ARD, Merz was asked whether Germany should voluntarily forgo the contest under such circumstances. “I would support that,” he said. “I think it’s a scandal that this is even being discussed. Israel belongs there.”
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) is scheduled to hold a vote in November to decide whether Israel will be permitted to compete in Eurovision 2026, set to take place in Vienna. If a majority among active EBU members votes against Israel’s inclusion, the country will be barred from competing.
Spain recently announced it would boycott the world’s largest live televised music event in May if Israel takes part. Ireland, Slovenia, Iceland, and the Netherlands have made similar threats.
On the other hand, Danish public broadcaster DR affirmed it will not support Israel’s removal from the competition “as long as they comply with the rules and regulations.”
Calls to exclude Israel from Eurovision intensified in recent months, following the war in Gaza triggered by Hamas’s October 7 massacre against Israel.
In April, shortly before the 2025 contest in Basel, formal requests to ban Israel were submitted by several countries, including Iceland and Spain.
The calls grew after Israel’s entry, “New Day Will Rise” performed by Yuval Raphael, came in second behind the Austrian winner, though Israel only received 60 points from the juries. The remaining 297 points came from the public, which overwhelmingly favored Israel’s entry over any other country.
Those results led broadcasters from Spain, Iceland, Belgium, Finland, and Ireland, to either request audits of their national televoting results or question the current methodology.
The Austrian winner of this year’s contest, JJ, called for Israel to be suspended from Eurovision, though he later walked back those comments.