The Netherlands will not take part in next year’s Eurovision Song Contest, its public broadcaster announced on Monday, saying the event can no longer be considered neutral amid deep divisions over the war in Gaza. The decision adds one of the contest’s most successful nations to a growing list of countries stepping away.
“It is undeniable that international conflicts are increasingly affecting the Contest, undermining its neutral character,” said Taco Zimmerman, director-general of the broadcaster AVROTROS, in a statement. He argued that the competition had “become a platform for division,” a turn organisers have struggled to contain over the past two editions.
The contest has been shaken by a wave of boycotts tied to Israel’s participation. Earlier this month organisers said they would bar any country involved in an armed conflict from hosting, but the Dutch broadcaster said those changes did not provide sufficient confidence that the event’s independent and neutral character had been restored. Israel finished second in both 2025 and 2026, narrowly missing the win each time.
Next year’s show, the world’s biggest live televised music event, is scheduled for 15 May in the Bulgarian Black Sea city of Burgas. It will be the first time the Balkan nation hosts, after Bulgarian singer Darina Yotova, who performs as Dara, won this year’s final in Vienna with the floor-filler “Bangaranga.”
Since it began in 1956, Eurovision has served as a launchpad for some of pop’s biggest names, from ABBA to Celine Dion, Cliff Richard and Olivia Newton-John. Yet its reach has slipped. The 2026 final drew 131 million viewers, down 35 million on the previous year, after the Netherlands, Iceland, Spain, Ireland and Slovenia all withdrew, with the latter three declining to broadcast the show at all.
