The organisers of the Eurovision Song Contest have announced a significant overhaul of its voting and promotion regulations for the 2026 contest, following formal allegations of "interference" by the Israeli government during the 2025 competition.
Allegations and Broadcasters' Concerns
The decision for change comes after several national broadcasters raised serious concerns about the integrity of the public vote in the May 2025 contest held in Basel, Switzerland. Israel's representative, Yuval Raphael, received the highest number of public votes, ultimately securing a runner-up position after the professional jury votes were tallied.
This result prompted immediate scrutiny. Ireland's national broadcaster, RTE, requested a detailed breakdown of the voting numbers from the contest's governing body, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Meanwhile, Spain's RTVE publicly called for a "complete review" of the entire voting system to prevent any future "external interference".
The most pointed criticism emerged in September from Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS, which stated it could no longer justify Israel's participation due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. The broadcaster went further, alleging there had been "proven interference by the Israeli government" during the contest, which it claimed was used as a "political instrument".
Key Changes for Eurovision 2026
In response to these mounting concerns, the EBU has unveiled a suite of reforms designed to safeguard the competition's neutrality. Contest director Martin Green emphasised that the event "should remain a neutral space and must not be instrumentalised".
The key changes set for the 2026 contest in Vienna, Austria, include:
- A halving of the public voting cap, reducing the maximum number of votes per person from 20 to 10 via online, SMS, or phone methods.
- Stricter rules on artist promotion, explicitly discouraging campaigns "undertaken or supported by third parties, including governments or governmental agencies".
- The reinstatement of professional juries in the semi-finals for the first time since 2022, creating a roughly 50-50 balance between public and jury votes.
- Enhanced technical safeguards to detect and prevent suspicious or coordinated voting patterns.
- A mandate for younger jurors, requiring at least two jury members aged between 18 and 25 to better reflect the contest's younger audience.
The EBU stated that any attempts to "unduly influence the results will lead to sanctions". Mr. Green clarified that "no broadcaster or artist may now directly engage with or support campaigns by third parties... that could distort the vote".
Political Pressure and International Reaction
These rule changes occur against a backdrop of intense political pressure on the EBU. In September, the broadcasters of Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland, and Slovenia threatened to withdraw from the competition entirely unless Israel was excluded, mirroring the action taken against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Iceland's broadcaster, RUV, described the new rules as "a step in the right direction". The final decision on Israel's future participation is scheduled for the EBU's winter general assembly in early December.
This political friction has been exacerbated by public statements from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Following the 2025 contest, he told Yuval Raphael, "you're the real winner. Statistically, it's true… You entered the hearts of a huge portion of the public in Europe." A similar sentiment was expressed to the 2024 Israeli entrant, Eden Golan.
The upcoming contest in Vienna will mark the 70th anniversary of Eurovision, an milestone the EBU hopes will be celebrated in a more stable and controversy-free environment.
