I am a big fan of Eurovision, but this year’s competition brings only sadness. I won’t be playing | Dave Keating

For the past two years, there has been growing controversy over Israel’s involvement EurovisionI and many other Eurovision superfans have been fighting the competition, even though there was no doubt.

This week, however, as the usual line-up of powerful music and comedy competes in Vienna, we are not united by the joy we have, but by the sadness we share in the politics of the competition. This sadness pales in comparison to the heartache and grief that people are experiencing from these political wars, but it is still there.

Five countries – Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, Iceland and the Netherlands – was out of Eurovision this year. Their absence is due to a problem of mismanagement by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the body of public broadcasters in Europe including the Middle East and North Africa, which organizes the competition.

Eurovision has always had a political dimension – that has always been part of its appeal. But EBU crossed the Rubicon when released Russia in 2022 because of the attack on Ukraine, who went win that year thanks for the public vote that shows political support across Europe.

Once opened, Pandora’s box has become very difficult to close, like Israel the controversy has shown. The EBU has been doing well in this new era, and as a result, the future of Eurovision is in jeopardy.

Like many fans, including some Israelis, I thought that the Israeli broadcaster Kan had the right instincts when he said that he would not participate in 2024. As the war in Gaza escalated, the EBU asked Kan and Israeli composers that year to change the words they saw. referring to the attack by Hamas on 7 October. Like former Israeli Eurovision contestant Noah he said: “I always hate to boycott culture.

But the president of Israel Isaac Herzog. intervenedforcing Kan to change course and allow Israeli singer Eden Golan to compete with the modified vocals. Israel’s participation in the past three competitions has led to protests and boycotts. But until last yearno European broadcaster called for Israel to be excluded and the Eurovision team, in particular, watched closely, even though we were horrified by what was happening in Gaza. We did not want the competition to be known by the actions of one of its members.

But it wasn’t enough just to be on the Eurovision stage. Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is determined to win, thanks to soft power. According to New York Times investigation published this week, the Israeli government has partially supported the independent campaign for the past three years, which spent at least $1m, which seems to encourage people to vote for Israel to show their political support.

That campaign was also billboards in Times Square and send messages to agents. Although the US is not in the competition, Americans can vote because the EBU has opened voting worldwide. Netanyahu himself wrote on Instagram, telling supporters in 2025 Israel’s 20th vote – the amount of money allowed per person.

Israel came first in the 2025 public vote throughout Europe. The public vote makes up half of the entrants along with the votes of the expert judges. Last year reveal the winnerwhich is usually a time of drama and suspense, it was a scary watch. Perhaps because of his government’s campaign, Israel was suddenly elevated to the top of the leaderboard. If the judges had not put down the music, then this week’s competition would have been held in Tel Aviv. This would mean the end of the race as we know it.

Despite all this, only minor changes have been made to the voting rules this year. People from anywhere in the world can vote multiple times, whether they are watching or not.

The EBU has found no evidence of plagiarism or cheating, but it seems unlikely that Israel’s incredible songs of the past two years have drawn so many audiences that they achieved the highest voting records in the competition’s history. The fact is that under the current law, which means that several hundred people who vote multiple times can determine the result, political voting is regulated. Forget the idea of ​​”boycotting” – people don’t want to watch a tournament where another country comes out on top every year because of it.

Most disappointing, after the 2024 and 2025 races, some in Israeli media he said that the results of the popular vote were a sign of Israel’s political expansion. Israeli Ambassador to Belgium, Idit Rosenzweig-Abu, he announced: “Many who do not speak will speak again.” But obviously, if the supporters of Israel’s actions all vote for one candidate and the opponents have their votes divided among the rest, this does not mean a “silent majority”.

Eurovision has been one of the highlights of my time Europesince I moved here as an American 20 years ago. I fell in love with the competition, not only because it’s so exciting, but also because it’s unusual – traditional European exports are made entirely without US influence. That’s why I’ve been there seven times. But this Saturday, like most Eurofans, I will not be preparing. I’m not boycotting Eurovision. I also don’t like watching a competition that feels premeditated and not about the music.