Several national broadcasters, including those of Ireland and Spain, have announced their withdrawal from the Eurovision Song Contest in 2026. The announcements are in response to confirmation today by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) that Israel will be allowed to participate in next May’s event in Austria.
At the EBU Winter General Assembly in Geneva, members took part in a secret ballot to determine whether a set of new, stricter rules – intended to discourage governments and third parties from disproportionately promoting entries – would be sufficient.
The vote was introduced after Israel was accused of artificially boosting its ranking on the contest’s leaderboard with a paid-for advertising campaign – accusations it has not directly responded to, according to BBC News.
The fact that the new raft of rules was accepted meant that there was no separate vote on Israel’s participation, which has been hugely controversial in recent years amid concern over the humanitarian toll of the war in Gaza.
Following the news, Ireland, Spain, Slovenia and the Netherlands all announced boycotts against the European contest, with more national broadcasters set to announce their decisions in the days and weeks ahead.
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A statement from Irish broadcaster RTÉ said: “Following today’s EBU Winter General Assembly in Geneva at which Israel’s participation in the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest was confirmed, RTÉ’s position remains unchanged. RTÉ will not participate in the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest, nor will RTÉ broadcast the competition.
“RTÉ feels that Ireland’s participation remains unconscionable given the appalling loss of lives in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there, which continues to put the lives of so many civilians at risk. RTÉ remains deeply concerned by the targeted killing of journalists in Gaza during the conflict and the continued denial of access to international journalists to the territory.”
Spanish broadcaster RTVE said: “The board of directors of RTVE agreed last September that Spain would withdraw from Eurovision if Israel was part of it.
“This withdrawal also means that RTVE will not broadcast the Eurovision 2026 final… nor the preliminary semi-finals.”
Ireland – who sent singer Emmy to compete in 2025 – is the joint record-holder for the country with the most Eurovision wins, tied with Sweden on seven.
Spain, who this year competed with Melody, has won twice, and is one of the so-called “Big Five” countries alongside France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. The “Big Five” are those whose broadcasters are the contest’s biggest financial contributors.
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Slovenia and the Netherlands have also announced their withdrawal, with Dutch broadcaster Avrotros saying that Israeli involvement “under the current circumstances is incompatible with the public values that are essential to us”.
Slovenian broadcaster RTV has announced their boycott too, with Iceland’s RÚV due to consider its position next week.
Finish broadcaster Yle, meanwhile, has confirmed that the country will take part as planned, and with regards to the United Kingdom, a BBC spokesperson is quoted by BBC News as saying: “We support the collective decision made by members of the EBU. This is about enforcing the rules of the EBU and being inclusive.”
Eurovision 2026 is slated for two semi-finals on 12 and 14 May, with a final on 16 May.
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Shaun is an Evening News Editor at Digital Spy, with over a decade of experience reporting on all things pop culture. He has written for outlets including Metro, Attitude, Huffington Post, The Mirror, Yahoo!, Pink News and Express Online; specialising in TV, movies, soaps, music and LGBTQ+ issues. He is also a BAFTA Rocliffe-winning scriptwriter, having written episodes of the soap Hollyoaks, the official Steps musical Here & Now and multiple Offie Award-nominated plays. He studied English Literature and Drama at the University of East Anglia, and will happily talk at length about Desperate Housewives to anyone who’ll listen.