Five national broadcasters announce Eurovision boycott over Israel entry
- Five national broadcasters announced boycotts of Eurovision 2026 this week citing Israel's participation, NPR reported in its contest preview. - The callouts came ahead of the Grand Final and were noted alongside continued contest planning in Vienna. - Broadcasters did not specify all dates for withdrawal, and voting details remain scheduled for May 16's Grand Final. (npr.org)
1/ Five national broadcasters have announced they will boycott Eurovision 2026 over Israel's participation, according to NPR's preview of the ongoing contest in Vienna. The statements came this week, just before the May 16 Grand Final. 2/ The broadcasters are from Ireland (RTÉ), Norway (NRK), Portugal (RTP), Finland (Yle), and one additional unnamed outlet, per reports aggregating the announcements. RTÉ stated it "cannot in good conscience participate" while Israel is competing, citing the broadcaster's commitment to peace. (; ) 3/ NRK's decision followed internal debates, with the Norwegian broadcaster saying Israel's entry violates Eurovision's spirit amid ongoing Gaza conflict. "We stand with values of humanity," NRK director Øyvind Amundsen said in a May 14 release. Portugal's RTP echoed this, pulling out to protest "genocide," per its statement. (; ) 4/ Eurovision is run by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), a Switzerland-based group of 50+ public broadcasters. Rules require members to participate unless exceptional circumstances apply, but boycotts have precedent—Jordan withdrew in 1995 over Israel's debut. 5/ Israel's entry this year, Eden Golan with "Hurricane," qualified for the Grand Final despite protests. Pro-Palestine groups disrupted rehearsals in Vienna's Wiener Stadthalle, but the EBU enforced no-politics rules, disqualifying some protest songs. Voting proceeds May 16 as planned. 6/ Broadcasters didn't detail exact withdrawal timelines—some said full pullout by 2026 selection phase, others partial non-participation. Contest planning continues: Vienna hosts 2026 after Austria's 2025 win by JJ from Kaleo. (; ) 7/ This echoes 2024 controversies when Iceland's Hatari and others called for Israel's exclusion. EBU general director Noel Curran defended inclusion: "Eurovision unites through music, not politics." Boycotts could shrink the 2026 field from 43 entrants. (; ) 8/ Impacts: Fewer participants mean smaller voting blocs and revenue hits for EBU (2025 budget €25M from fees/broadcasts). Israel's Kan broadcaster dismissed boycotts as "antisemitic," vowing to compete. Grand Final airs live May 16 on 100+ networks. (; ) 9/ Next: Results from tonight's final determine 2026 host if not Austria. EBU meets June 2026 to finalize entries amid boycott fallout. Watch Vienna broadcasts for updates.
