AVROTROS rules out Eurovision 2027 return for the Netherlands

Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS has confirmed it will not participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2027, extending its absence from the competition following its withdrawal this year.

The announcement came after unconfirmed reports in the Netherlands suggested the country was preparing to return to Eurovision and that singer Davina Michelle may already have been selected.

However, AVROTROS confirmed on Monday that it would not be returning, saying recent changes made by the European Broadcasting Union had not gone far enough to restore its confidence in the competition.

“AVROTROS will not participate in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2027 because the event can no longer be considered neutral, with a participating country still involved in a large-scale military conflict,” the broadcaster said.

“Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East are having a significant impact on the Contest and have led to deep divisions.”

AVROTROS said it had spent the past year calling on the EBU to introduce clearer and more transparent rules around the participation of countries involved in military conflicts.

It said the EBU's recently announced changes did not provide sufficient confidence that Eurovision's “independent and neutral character” had been restored.

Netherlands could still compete

However, the announcement does not necessarily rule the Netherlands out of Eurovision 2027 altogether.

AVROTROS has informed Dutch public broadcasting organisation NPO that it will no longer take responsibility for the country's Eurovision participation, with the decision on what happens next now returning to the NPO.

“The NPO will determine how this will proceed for 2027,” AVROTROS said.

That potentially leaves the door open for another Dutch broadcaster to take over the country's participation.

Omroep MAX had previously expressed interest in taking over Eurovision from AVROTROS, although earlier this month had cooled on the possibility.

The latest announcement also pours cold water on reports which emerged over the weekend that the Netherlands had already decided to return.

Dutch media reporter Jordi Versteegden had claimed the Netherlands were preparing to announce a comeback and that 30-year-old singer Davina Michelle had been chosen as the country's representative.

Neither claim has been confirmed, and AVROTROS's latest statement makes clear it will not be the broadcaster behind a Dutch entry in 2027.

Second year away for AVROTROS

AVROTROS withdrew from Eurovision 2026 after the EBU confirmed Israel would be permitted to compete.

The Netherlands was one of five countries to sit out the contest alongside Spain, Ireland, Iceland and Slovenia.

In explaining its latest decision, AVROTROS again pointed to the humanitarian situation in Gaza, restrictions on press freedom and concerns about the impact of international conflicts on Eurovision.

AVROTROS Director-General Taco Zimmerman said the broadcaster remained committed to its values even if that meant leaving Eurovision behind.

“The Eurovision Song Contest was originally created to bring people and countries together,” Zimmerman said.

“It is undeniable that international conflicts are increasingly affecting the Contest, undermining its neutral character.”

He added that the decision was painful because AVROTROS “would have very much liked to be part of the Contest again next year”.

The Netherlands is one of Eurovision's original seven participating countries and has won the competition five times, most recently with Duncan Laurence and *Arcade* in 2019.

Its most recent entry was Claude with C'est La Vie, which finished 12th at Eurovision 2025 in Basel with 175 points.

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