In May 2026, Israel made it to the finals and finished in second place. Just like in May 2025 when Israel finished second. 2026 is the first year Israel could compete without any hostages remaining captured in Gaza since Oct 7, 2023.
To me it appears that among of the die-hard Eurovision superfans, the type who bought tickets and flew to Vienna in person, many of them are the type who boo Israel loudly from the live audience whenever Israel performs on stage. That bias is clearly not representative of the public at large, however: In both 2025 and 2026, the public overwhelmingly voted to place Israel as Number One. Each year it was the other 50%, the professional jurists, whose votes reduced Israel’s impact. Perhaps the superfans and the jurists are biased against Israel, but not the general public and casual viewers and voters.
Incidentally, half of the vote weighting comes from the public, and half from the pro “music-biz” jurists. In a obvious but simple rule for friendly competition, voters are not allowed to vote for their own country. However, it is known that traditionally Greece always sends all its votes to Cyprus in return for all Cyprus votes being sent in favor of Greece.
For nations to compete, they must have a public broadcast TV station which is in good standing with the European Broadcasting Union. That is, a broadcaster which:
- Is not a simple government mouthpiece, but which offers liberal and contrary views to those expressed by the government;
- The singer and song must not directly reference any political or wartime viewpoints;
- The broadcaster must air the show in its entirety, without cancelling any singer or nation (as Morocco and Ireland wanted to do);
- The broadcaster must follow all rules including not not promoting the show by government-related accounts more than 10 or 20 times (depending on the year).
“In Israel, where loudness, blurred boundaries, and exaggeration are an essential foundation of the state’s infrastructure, Eurovision has become one of the most important events on the calendar.” —Times of Israel ¹ as translated to English from the Hebrew of Zman Yisrael, the original.
This statement suggests that Eurovision’s flamboyant, over-the-top nature deeply resonates with Israel’s national character and societal norms. The country, shaped by constant geopolitical tension, rapid social change, and a culture that values emotional intensity and resilience, finds a symbolic mirror in Eurovision’s theatricality and emotional excess.
Cultural alignment: The contest’s emphasis on spectacle, emotional expression, and defiance of restraint aligns with Israeli public life, where communication is often direct, passionate, and unfiltered.
National significance: Over time, Israel has invested heavily in Eurovision not just as entertainment, but as a tool of **hasbara (public diplomacy)**, aiming to project a positive, modern, and culturally vibrant image to the world—especially amid international criticism.
Domestic focus: As noted in the sources, government-backed campaigns around Eurovision are **primarily aimed at Israeli citizens**, reinforcing a sense of global belonging and defiance against isolation, rather than changing foreign public opinion.
Political context: The more controversial Israel’s global standing becomes—especially amid the Gaza war—the more the state and its supporters treat Eurovision success as a **proxy for international acceptance**, turning a song contest into a high-stakes national event.
Does nation involved in war receive an unfair advantage? Proponents of this view, such as Slovenia, maintain this, even if a nation is the defender and not the aggressor.
In 2022, for example, Ukraine’s singers likely received an outsized number of votes due to their conflict with Russia, who was prevented from competing due to its aggressor position against Ukraine in the war. We see that several nations begrudged the extra attention that Ukraine experienced that year:
“Some trace the current heightened tensions back to the decision in February 2022 to expel Russia from Eurovision following its invasion of Ukraine. At the time the EBU concluded a Russian entry would “bring the competition into disrepute” after it consulted widely among its membership. There is currently no Russian broadcaster that is in the EBU.
“The Ukrainian all-male group Kalush Orchestra, who were given permission to leave their country under martial law to compete at Eurovision, went on to receive the highest number of public points in the event’s history, winning in the final moments of the 2022 contest, pushing the UK’s Sam Ryder into second place.” —BBC ²
OK so then if an aggressor nation wants to exclude a competitor from the singing, they can just launch an attack and then they both are kept out of the competition. Seems silly.
If nations such as Slovenia are that upset about the extra attention given to Ukraine or Israel, perhaps they could exercise their energies towards promoting peace and nonviolence in the world. It’s hardly Israel’s fault to get attacked by Gaza, as much as it’s not Ukraine’s fault to be attacked by Russia. Russia, by the way, has no broadcaster who is a current EBU member in good standing. This may be because all their stations are government mouthpieces.
Nations such as Bulgaria (winner of 2026) and Spain boycotted Israel either this year or in the past—but did not boycott Ukraine:
“While other countries, such as Bulgaria and Romania, are returning to the competition after a two-year absence, the five states boycotting the contest represent a significant financial loss for the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which oversees Eurovision.” — Le Monde³
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Sources:
¹ Times of Israel: https://www.timesofisrael.com/the-new-york-times-missed-the-mark-on-israel-and-eurovision/
² BBC: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgkpgm6vk48o
³ Le Monde: https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2026/05/16/eurovision-2026-israel-s-participation-sparks-controversy_6753502_4.html