Three European public channels announced this Thursday their withdrawal from Eurovision 2026. Spain, the Netherlands and Ireland denounce the EBU’s decision to keep Israel in the competition, despite the war in Gaza and growing concerns about human rights violations. A major political divide is opening within the continent’s biggest musical spectacle.
An assumed Spanish rupture
Spanish public television RTVE was the first to formalize its boycott. In a sharp press release, it announced its immediate withdrawal from the 2026 competition, a few hours after the vote of EBU members during their 95th General Assembly in Geneva.
RTVE justifies its decision by the impossibility of “ignoring the dramatic humanitarian situation” and considers that keeping Israel in the competition amounts to “disconnecting the competition from its moral responsibilities”. Madrid thus marks one of its strongest political positions in the European audiovisual landscape.
The Netherlands cites a conflict of values
Shortly after, Dutch broadcaster Avrotros followed suit in Spain. In his press release, he asserts that participating in the 2026 edition would be “incompatible” with the fundamental values of the organization.
Avrotros management explains having “weighed all aspects” before concluding that the presence of Israel in the competition, in the current context, “damages the credibility and social responsibility” of the channel. The Netherlands, a country regularly involved in issues of civil liberties, is thus withdrawing from an event in which it has participated for more than 60 years.
Ireland motivates its withdrawal by the situation in Gaza
The Irish RTE has in turn announced that it will not participate in the 2026 edition… and that it will not even broadcast it on its antennas.
The channel explicitly refers to the “appalling loss of life in Gaza” and a humanitarian crisis that “continues to endanger the lives of thousands of civilians.” RTE also says it is “deeply concerned” by the targeted assassinations of Palestinian journalists and by the restrictions imposed by Israel on the international press.
An open crisis for the EBU
Faced with three major defections, the European Broadcasting Union is going through one of the deepest crises in its history. The retention of Israel, decided in Geneva, causes an open divide between public broadcasters. Other European television stations could follow, according to several internal sources.
Eurovision, Europe’s cultural showcase since 1956, now finds itself caught in a political whirlwind whose scale could redefine its rules and editorial line for years to come.
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