Calls grow to bar Israel from Eurovision

Ireland has become the latest country to threaten a boycott of next year's Eurovision Song Contest if Israel is allowed to participate, deepening the crisis facing organisers of one of the world's biggest televised events.

The Irish national broadcaster, RTE, announced on Thursday that it would not take part in the 2026 contest should Israel remain in the line-up. It cited "the ongoing and appalling loss of lives in Gaza" as well as the killing of journalists.

"RTE feels that Ireland's participation would be unconscionable," the broadcaster said in a statement.

Slovenia's national broadcaster, RTVSLO, has already made its participation conditional, while Spain's culture minister, Ernest Urtasun, has publicly urged a boycott if Israel is not expelled.

Urtasun told Spanish television this week: "I don't think we can normalise Israel's participation in international events as if nothing is happening." He described Israel as a "genocidal government" and said measures would be taken if the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) fails to act.

The growing pushback echoes calls from more than 70 former Eurovision contestants and Austria's most recent winner, JJ, who have urged Israel's exclusion. Spain's prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has also compared Israel's case to Russia's expulsion after its invasion of Ukraine, insisting the same standard should apply over the war in Gaza.

The EBU, which organises the contest from Geneva, has delayed the usual participation deadline until December, appointing a consultant to help navigate what it acknowledges are "deeply held concerns" among members. A final vote on Israel's status is expected at its General Assembly later this year.

The 2026 Eurovision is scheduled for Vienna next May, drawing an estimated 160 million viewers worldwide. But with broadcasters in Ireland, Slovenia, and potentially Spain threatening to withdraw, the spectacle risks being overshadowed by the fiercest political row in its history.