Four countries—Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Slovenia—announced on Thursday that they will boycott the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest over Israel's continued participation. The decision followed a meeting of the contest's organizer, the European Broadcasting Union, which declined to vote on whether to suspend Israel despite calls from several member broadcasters. The boycotting nations cited the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza as the reason for their withdrawal, with Ireland's broadcaster saying participation alongside Israel would be "unconscionable," the New York Times reports.
Israel has competed in Eurovision since 1973 and has won four times. Its inclusion is permitted because its public broadcaster, KAN, is a member of the broadcasting union. KAN confirmed it will participate in 2025 and criticized efforts to remove Israel as a "cultural boycott." The boycott leaves Eurovision, one of the world's most-watched music competitions, in a sensitive position. "This is certainly one of the most serious crises that the organization has ever faced," said Eurovision analyst Dean Vuletic, per the AP. "Next year, we're going to see the biggest political boycott of Eurovision ever." The 2026 event is to be held in Austria.
Spain is a major financial contributor and automatic finalist, while Ireland and the Netherlands have multiple wins. The EBU meeting introduced rule changes to limit government influence over the contest's voting but did not address Israel's participation, per the Times. Eight countries had requested that a secret ballot be held at Thursday's meeting in Geneva, per the Guardian. The issue has drawn attention at the highest levels of European politics, with Germany's chancellor stating that Israel should not be excluded. And Israeli President Isaac Herzog posted thanks on Thursday to the nations that support keeping his country in the competition.
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
