Spain has become the latest European nation to announce it will not take part in the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest if Israel is permitted to participate, a decision that makes it the first of the competition's "Big Five" founding countries to take such a dramatic stand.
The majority decision by the board of Spain's state broadcaster, RTVE, was made on Tuesday, according to a report in The Guardian.
Explaining the broadcaster’s position, RTVE president José Pablo López said that as joint organizers of the contest, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and its members could no longer remain silent about Israel’s actions in Gaza.
“While Israel has regularly participated in the competition, the current events and the genocide currently taking place make it impossible for us to look the other way,” he charged.
López rejected the notion that the Eurovision contest is apolitical, a claim often used to justify Israel's continued presence despite the ongoing conflict. “It is not accurate to claim that Eurovision is merely an apolitical music festival. We are all aware that the contest carries significant political implications. The Israeli government is equally aware of this fact and leverages the event on the international stage.”
Spain’s announcement follows similar actions by Slovenia, Ireland, and the Netherlands. Slovenia's public broadcaster, RTV, was the first to announce its withdrawal, followed by RTÉ in Ireland and Avrotros in the Netherlands last week.
The EBU initiated a consultation process in July with the 37 broadcasters who participated in last year’s contest, after a meeting hosted by the BBC in London to discuss the growing divisions over Israel's participation in 2026. The deadline for broadcasters to inform the EBU of their decision to participate has been extended to December.
Calls to exclude Israel from Eurovision intensified in recent months, following the war in Gaza triggered by Hamas's October 7 massacre against Israel.
In April, shortly before the 2025 contest in Basel, formal requests to ban Israel were submitted by several countries, including Iceland and Spain.
The calls grew after Israel’s entry, “New Day Will Rise” performed by Yuval Raphael, came in second behind the Austrian winner, though Israel only received 60 points from the juries. The remaining 297 points came from the public, which overwhelmingly favored Israel’s entry over any other country.
Those results led broadcasters from Spain, Iceland, Belgium, Finland, and Ireland, to either request audits of their national televoting results or question the current methodology.
The Austrian winner of this year’s contest, JJ, called for Israel to be suspended from Eurovision, though he later walked back those comments.
Earlier this week, it was reported that European officials involved with Eurovision have made unofficial proposals to Israeli representatives, suggesting a temporary withdrawal or performing under a neutral flag to resolve the crisis over Israel’s participation. Israeli officials are not expected to accept either option.