Where Eurovision boycott nations stand ahead of this week's EBU meeting

Image: EBU

A number of nations threatening a Eurovision boycott have announced their intentions following the announced EBU rule changes.

It's been another big week in the world of Eurovision with Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Spain making statements about their Eurovision 2026 participation.

This follows the rule changes announced by the EBU to limit the types of promotion allowed, reduce the votes per person to 10 and to bring back juries to the semi-finals.

The changes were welcomed by most, but many also felt they didn't go far enough.

Since then, the nations at the centre of a potential boycott gave updates to their stance ahead of the EBU General Assembly this week, from 4-5 December.

Iceland

The board of Iceland's broadcaster RUV has approved a recommendation asking the EBU to exclude Israel from next year's contest.

The vote was approved by five of the nine board members.

Board chair Stefan Jon Hafstein said they expect clarity soon, explaining:

"My understanding is that on 4 December, this matter concerning Israel’s participation and the rules regarding the contest will be discussed, and our resolution will have been presented before that meeting. It will therefore be fully on the table."

No final decision has been made about Iceland's own participation with the board meeting again after the General Assembly to determine Iceland's final position.

Ireland

Ireland has previously stated that if Israel competes, it will not be at Eurovision 2026.

Following the rules changes, a spokesperson for broadcaster RTE said:

"Clearly events in the Middle East are unfolding day by day. As previously confirmed by the EBU, the issue of participation in the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest has been included on the agenda of the EBU Executive Board's ordinary Winter General Assembly, which will take place in December."

The Netherlands

Dutch broadcaster AVROTOS had previously stated strongly that participation next year "will not be possible as long as Israel is admitted by the EBU."

This was due to the "human suffering in Gaza" and concern about the "serious erosion of press freedom" and the "proven evidence of interference by the Israeli government during the most recent edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, in which the event was used as a political instrument."

Following the rule changes announced, AVROTOS gave a statement to Sonfestival.be stating they will only respond after the General Assembly meeting this week.

Slovenia

Slovenia has previously stated it will not compete if Israel is in Vienna. In addition, draft programming documents released by their broadcaster RTVSLO, showed no mention of Eurovision. In previous years, when they had competed, they were in the draft papers.

This led to speculation that they had already decided to not compete.

This was cleared up by Natalija Gorščak, the President of the RTVSLO board, stating:

“However, if next week, on Thursday, when the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) General Assembly is scheduled to vote on whether Israel will participate in the Eurovision Song Contest or not.

"[If] it turns out that Israel will not participate in the Eurovision Song Contest, then we will propose to the council a change to the program-production plan and we will of course participate in this festival,”

Spain

Spain has taken one of the strongest positions so far, with RTVE’s board voting in September to withdraw from Eurovision 2026 if Israel is allowed to compete.

Appearing before Spain’s Joint Parliamentary Control Committee this week, RTVE president Jose Pablo Lopez made it clear nothing has shifted, saying:

“RTVE’s position remains unchanged: We have maintained the same position for months, which is that Israel’s presence is untenable.”

He linked Spain’s stance directly to the situation in Gaza, telling senators “we are talking about a genocide in Gaza, and that Eurovision is a competition, but human rights are not a competition.”

They have also said that Israel’s actions at recent contests as a major concern, stating that “Israel has broken the rules and has not been sanctioned for at least the last two years” and that “any other country that had engaged in this practice would have been sanctioned.”

The new EBU rule changes did nothing to move Spain’s position, with Lopez saying “The measures are not enough and do not guarantee that a government like Israel’s or any other government cannot occur,” and adding that “More measures are necessary, and that will be the proposal we will take to the next General Assembly, which will be held on the 4th and 5th.”

Spain’s stance appears locked in, but we will not know exactly what happens until the official announcement of the nations competing.

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