The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has officially announced the cancellation of the 'Eurovision Tour' events associated with the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest, amid a growing wave of protests against Israel's participation in the upcoming edition. In a statement, the EBU confirmed that this decision came as a result of continuous pressure and widespread objections due to the genocidal war waged by the occupation in the Gaza Strip, which complicated the organizational landscape of the international competition.
Recent days have witnessed an escalation in the official stances of several member states, with five countries – Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland, and Slovenia – announcing their complete boycott of the competition. Sources indicated that this collective withdrawal made it impossible to proceed with organizing the tour, which was planned to be one of the largest promotional events in the contest's history, and was scheduled to begin after the official competitions next May.
For his part, Eurovision Song Contest Director, Martin Green, stated that the organizers faced unprecedented challenges that prevented the implementation of the planned arrangements, noting that the team and producers made significant efforts to overcome obstacles but to no avail. Green added that the focus will now be on trying to salvage the 70th edition of the competition scheduled to be held in the Austrian capital, Vienna, despite the sharp division caused by Israeli participation.
The roots of the crisis date back to the 95th General Assembly of the European Broadcasting Union held in Geneva last December, where it was approved to allow Israel to participate despite popular and official demands for its exclusion. This decision sparked widespread anger in European artistic and cultural circles, prompting the public broadcasters in the five aforementioned countries to take a decisive stance by withdrawing in solidarity with the victims in the Palestinian territories.
It is worth noting that the Eurovision Song Contest has faced increasing pressure since last year to adopt a stance similar to what it took towards Russia after its crisis with Ukraine. However, the EBU's insistence on including Israel has put the competition in a moral and organizational dilemma. Artistic circles are awaiting the outcome of events in Vienna next May, amid expectations of continued field protests and additional withdrawals that could threaten the continuity of the competition in its usual form.
We made a difficult decision to cancel the European Tour due to unexpected challenges that we were unable to overcome.
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Due to Israel's participation... European Broadcasting Union cancels 'Eurovision Tour' events for Eurovision Song Contest