Following Spain’s decision to boycott the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna in May because of Israel’s continued participation, the country has just announced that it will not broadcast the popular event.
The Eurovision Fun website reported on Thursday that Spain’s public broadcaster, RTVE, had announced it would not air the song contest for the first time since the country began participating in 1961.
Timos Ilias wrote in Eurovision Fun: “The Spanish broadcaster’s stance is a direct response to the European Broadcasting Union’s (EBU) decision to allow Israel’s continued participation. RTVE officials stated that the contest’s stated mission of neutrality had become ‘impossible to maintain’ under current circumstances, describing the event’s current climate as one of political distrust.”
The step is serious because the EBU defines Eurovision as a competition among public broadcasters rather than countries, a convention that has generally kept politics out of the event. Some countries have boycotted the contest in the past for political reasons, including Armenia, Greece, Turkey, Georgia, and, ironically, Austria, which boycotted in 1969 when the competition was held in Spain because the country was then ruled by the Franco military dictatorship. But in most previous cases, the public broadcaster of the boycotting country technically continued its participation by broadcasting the contest.
First time a 'big five' country declines to participate and withdraws funding
Spain’s decision to boycott and not broadcast the show marks the first time that one of the “big five” countries that sponsor Eurovision – England, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain – has declined to participate, and it has withdrawn its share of the funding for the lavish broadcast.
Israel’s Yuval Raphael came in second overall and first in the televoting in 2025, and Spain was among the countries asking for rule changes this year, which were accepted by the EBU, in the hope that the new rules would make it harder for Israel to succeed. The rule-change requests came amid accusations that Israel had cheated and violated EBU rules. However, an investigation by the EBU concluded that Israel had not violated the contest’s rules.
While some Arab countries have shown Eurovision, Jordan cut its broadcast in 1978 when it became clear Israel would win for the first time, citing technical difficulties, and reported that the runner-up had won. Lebanon was set to take part in 2005, but when its broadcaster learned that it would have to broadcast the show in its entirety, including Israel’s entry, it withdrew, saying this would violate Lebanese law. Morocco took part once, in 1980.
Spanish Eurovision fans will still be able to watch the competition on YouTube. It has also been reported that viewers in Spain will still be able to vote, but as “Rest of World” voters rather than voters from a participating country.
After Eurovision’s governing board decided not to vote on excluding Israel in December, four other countries announced they would boycott: Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Slovenia. However, these other four countries are still planning to broadcast the event.
The first semi-final of Eurovision will be held on May 12, and Israel’s contestant, Noam Bettan, will perform the song, “Michelle,” on that evening, and the grand final will take place on May 16.
Israel has won Eurovision four times, in 1978, 1979, 1998, and 2018. Spain has won twice, in 1968 and 1969.