4 countries to boycott Eurovision due to Israel’s continued inclusion

[Everexpanding]

In a statement released on Thursday afternoon, the Dutch broadcaster Avrotros said it would also withdraw from next year’s contest. “After weighing all perspectives, Avrotros concludes that, under the current circumstances, participation cannot be reconciled with the public values that are fundamental to our organisation.”

The Slovenian national broadcaster, RTVSLO – the first to threaten a boycott this summer – said participation “would conflict with its values of peace, equality and respect”.

Spain’s culture minister, Ernest Urtasun, backed the decision, adding: “You can’t whitewash Israel given the genocide in Gaza. Culture should be on the side of peace and justice. I’m proud of an RTVE that puts human rights before any economic interest

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,” the broadcaster said in a statement.

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/dec/04/ireland-spain-and-the-netherlands-to-boycott-eurovision-2026-as-israel-cleared-to-compete

Good!

Huzzah!

Follow the money.

"RTÉ feels that Ireland’s participation remains unconscionable" - didn't they get damned near bankrupted when Ireland won three times in a row?

Given lots of countries are side-stepping hosting global events (Commonwealth Games, Olympics etc) due to the massive (and ever-climbing) costs, I'm always a little suspicious that when a country claims to be boycotting something for a moral reason, they're actually heaving a huge sigh of relief that they don't have to shell out for it this year.

Even the non-hosts of Eurovision, all the faff of selecting a song, selecting singers, shoehorning it into the schedule, co-ordinating the broadcasting and the voting, and for a return that may well be diminishing as Eurovision disappears into the increasingly-niche audience - can they still justify the expense? Follow the money!

I think you have to acknowledge those countries, especially Spain, Slovenia and Ireland, have had genuine moral objections which they’ve made abundantly clear from the start.

Else that’s a very long game they’ve been playing for the last two years just to save some money!!

UEFA have said they will move the football if the USA decide to ban any more countries. Sometimes sanctions work.

Germany and Austria would have withdrawn from Eurovision if Israel had been prevented from taking part.

Austria are supposed to be next year's hosts so I guess that would have been a little awkward.

Good, its time countries and people alike started voting with their feet

But the trouble is some countries will boycott Eurovision either way because not everyone (or every country) thinks the same.

No offence to anyone involved but hopefully they just cancel the whole thing.

Good, IDF shot two kids in the head mere days ago.

I posted this on another thread but it's also relevant here (from The Telegraph)

Spain, Ireland, Slovenia and the Netherlands will boycott next year’s Eurovision Song Contest after public broadcasters decided to let Israel compete.

Major financier Germany and next year’s host Austria had warned that they would withdraw from Eurovision if Israel was expelled, like Russia was after the invasion of Ukraine.

That would have left the organisers European Broadcasting Union (EBU), searching for a new host city before May, plunging the contest into even more chaos than it currently faces.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/12/04/eurovision-faces-its-waterloo-as-israel-threatened-with-ban/

Who cares let them go.

About the genocide or Eurovision @SharonEllis

There is no genocide. Racists stamping their feet and throwing their toys out of the pram.

It's good anyway that the most anti semitic countries in Europe have helpfully self identified.

@SharonEllis

This Israeli racist ? https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/nov/18/israel-accountability-gaza-genocide

the UN?

https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2025/09/israel-has-committed-genocide-gaza-strip-un-commission-finds

Amnesty ?

www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/11/israels-genocide-against-palestinians-in-gaza-continues-unabated-despite-ceasefire/

Everything has to have a moral stance these days, even a singing show. Lucky for Spain no one was feeling so judgy about them in the 60s and 70s. Or about Slovenia in the 90s.

What a pity that such a wonderfully camp show has to get involved in the mire of politics - I get it though! I support it.

Not anti semitic, anti genocide

Did they murder 20000 children too?

sure, sure

Well quite. Spain's record on racism and colonialism is pretty spectacular, with the dubious honour of one of the earliest attempts to codify racism, persecution of Jews, Muslims and Protestants, brutal colonial conquest, genocide and slavery and then the little matter of 20th Century fascism and continued issues with racism and antisemitism in modern Spain. I'd pipe down if I was Spain.

As an Irish person I stand with Ireland and the other countries who have boycotted it.

Can we ban Ukraine as well then? Anyone who is killing anyone else?

What about the ceasefire? Does that count for nothing?

Bollocks are they pulling out because of what Israel are accused of, it’s antisemitism pure and simple.

Ukraine won because they were at war but because Russia are involved they were considered to be the victims and handed the trophy on a plate or it would have been ours. They won purely on the sympathy vote.

And yet Israel are now having their exclusion demanded even though there’s now a ceasefire in place.

How far back should we go in terms of what atrocities countries have committed? Because if it’s based on the past then I think we might as well cancel out Eurovision altogether.

No, no, you don't understand. We will select only criteria that enable us to chuck out Israel! That is all that matters. Moral consistency be damned.