- Iceland joins four other nations, including Ireland and Spain, in boycotting Eurovision 2026 over Israel’s participation
- The EBU allowed Israel to compete in the contest, despite calls for exclusion.
- Broadcasters like RTVE and RUV have shared their reason for withdrawing from Eurovision 2026
Iceland is the fifth country to announce a boycott of Eurovision 2026 after the official decision to include Israel.
The country will join Ireland, Spain, Slovenia and the Netherlands, who have also confirmed they will boycott the 2026 singing extravaganza in Vienna on account of Israel’s inclusion.
In a statement, Icelandic broadcaster RUV said: ‘Participation of Israeli national broadcaster, KAN, in the contest has created disunity among both members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and the general public.’
Israel’s participation in the competition has been under question for some time, with several countries calling for Israel to be excluded, given the current genocide in Gaza.
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) general assembly in Geneva decided on Thursday that the country would be allowed to compete.
Meanwhile, after the decision, the BBC has said it supports the ‘collective decision’ to allow Israel to participate in next year’s Eurovision Song Contest.
A BBC spokesperson said of the decision: ‘We support the collective decision made by members of the EBU.
‘This is about enforcing the rules of the EBU and being inclusive.’
Who makes the decisions at Eurovision?
‘A large majority of members agreed that there was no need for a further vote on participation and that the Eurovision song contest 2026 should proceed as planned, with the additional safeguards in place,’ the EBU said in a statement.
The EBU, which is a body of public service media organisations, asked participating broadcasters to vote on changes. These included new rules to prevent countries organising campaigns for their acts.
This came after Israeli singer Yuval Raphael received the most votes from the public last May, finishing as runner-up after the jury votes.
According to the BBC, which attended the summit on Thursday, agreeing to the rule changes meant agreeing not to proceed with a vote on whether Israel could compete.
The big five are the five countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom) guaranteed to qualify for the Grand Final. This is because their broadcasters make the largest financial contributions to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the organisation that runs the contest.
Spanish outlets have highlighted that the EBU did not actually vote on whether Israel should be allowed to compete in a crucial general assembly in Geneva.
The EBU only put to a vote measures to prevent political interference and fraudulent votes, and upon their approval, it understood that the matter was settled.
By avoiding a discussion about Israel’s position in the competition, it was understood that the country would be allowed to compete.
The Eurovision Song Contest 2026 is set to be the 70th edition of the European show. It is scheduled to consist of two semi-finals and a final in May, held at Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna, Austria.
Wednesday was the final day for countries to decide whether they would join the boycott or not.
Which other countries are boycotting Eurovision 2026 and why?
After the decision had been reached, Dutch broadcaster Avrotros said that ‘participation under the current circumstances is incompatible with the public values that are essential to us’ in a statement.
Spanish broadcaster RTVE added: ‘The board of directors of RTVE agreed last September that Spain would withdraw from Eurovision if Israel was part of it.
Why has there been a boycott?
Despite the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) banning Russia after its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, Israel remained in the line-up, leading many to boycott the competition.
Protests in the 2025 host city of Malmö, Sweden, became so unmanageable that a ban on any country’s flag that wasn’t participating – including Palestine’s – was introduced, a move they publicly rowed back on.
Many people feel that excluding Russia but not Israel feels inconsistent with Eurovision’s aim of uniting people across borders and cultures.
The war in Gaza is not the only reason for the country to be ousted, as there have also been accusations of unfair voting practices.
Broadcasters from Ireland, Spain, Finland, and numerous other countries requested that the voting system be examined after Israel inexplicably topped the public vote.
The contest’s director, Martin Green, told the BBC that the voting was checked and was indeed valid.
‘This withdrawal also means that RTVE will not broadcast the Eurovision 2026 final… nor the preliminary semi-finals.’
RTE, Ireland’s leading broadcaster, also announced that Ireland would not be participating.
A number of other countries have followed suit, with RTV Slovenia saying Belgium, Iceland and Slovenia will not take part.
Spain has been part of the integral ‘big five’ in the competition and the country’s decision not to take part will mean that only the ‘big four’ will compete.
Which countries have confirmed they’re competing in Eurovision?
Aside from the five countries that have confirmed they will boycott, it is understood the remaining countries (35) will compete as usual.
Notable countries that have reconfirmed their attendance after speculation include Poland.
Polish broadcaster TVP wrote they ‘are aware of the scale of tension surrounding the upcoming edition’ and ‘understand the emotions and concerns.’
They added: ‘However, we believe that Eurovision still has a chance to once again become a space filled with music. And only music. We, like the overwhelming majority of EBU members, offer this opportunity.’
Italian broadcaster RAI also ‘confirmed its desire to strengthen Italy’s role in promoting music, culture, and entertainment internationally’ by backing Israel’s inclusion.
Countries such as Belgium, Estonia, and Georgia have also reiterated their decision to remain in the competition after deliberation.
It is understood that Canada has expressed interest in joining the 2026 competition. Other interested countries, Kosovo, Liechtenstein and Kazakhstan have been denied entry to next year’s contest.
Eurovision has confirmed participation fees will not be affected by the withrdawals.
A version of this article was first published on December 4, 2025.
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