Spain becomes latest country to boycott Eurovision over Israel’s involvement
Spain is the latest European country to announce its decision to boycott Eurovision if Israel is allowed to compete.
The decision by Spain was formalised during a meeting in Madrid on September 16th held by the nation’s public broadcaster RTVE. They are the latest country to take this stance, following Slovenia, Ireland and the Netherlands.
In a statement, Spain’s public broadcaster said, “The RTVE Board of Directors agreed during its meeting this Tuesday, September 16, that Spain will withdraw from the Eurovision Song Contest if Israel participates in the competition. The measure was taken at the proposal of RTVE President José Pablo López, by an absolute majority of the Corporation’s governing body, with 10 votes in favor, 4 against, and one abstention.”
Their statement (via ESC Today) continued: “Spain is the first member country of the Big Five (composed of the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Germany, and Spain) to make this decision and joins other countries that have already announced their withdrawal from Eurovision if Israel is not excluded, following the announcements by Ireland, Slovenia, Iceland, and the Netherlands.”
Spain’s official decision to withdraw from the competition if Israel competes comes after Spanish Minister for Culture, Ernest Urtasun, urged them to do so. Urtasun appeared on the television show, La hora de La 1 on TVE last week, and said, “I don’t think we can normalise Israel’s participation in international events as if nothing is happening.”
Urtasun also remarked: “In Eurovision’s case, it is not an individual artist who participates but someone who participates on behalf of that country’s citizens.”
Irish public broadcaster RTÉ said competing alongside Israel “would be unconscionable given the ongoing and appalling loss of lives in Gaza”. They also highlighted “the targeted killing of journalists in Gaza, and the denial of access to international journalists to the territory”.
Meanwhile, Dutch public broadcaster Avrotros echoed this sentiment in their statement over the weekend, saying of the situation in Gaza, “Human suffering, the suppression of press freedom and political interference are at odds with the values of public broadcasting.”
Broadcasters typically have to inform the European Broadcasting Union before October regarding their participation in Eurovision, but it has been extended until December for next year’s event.
The BBC’s director general recently said of the UK’s involvement in Eurovision in 2026: “Eurovision has never been about politics, it should be a celebration of music and culture that brings people together. We need to see what the broadcast union decides.”
The competition is set to take place in Vienna, Austria, next May.
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