In reversal, Holland pulls out of Eurovision citing ‘sensitivities’ over Israel

The Netherlands will not participate in next year’s Eurovision Song Contest, its broadcaster NPO said Tuesday, citing “sensitivities” over Israel’s participation, reversing its announcement last month that it would likely join the event.

“We have known for some time that Israel’s participation elicits various reactions in society and causes discussion and division… therefore, after consultation with the Board of Broadcasters, the NPO has decided to forgo participation in 2027,” Jurre Bosman, NPO’s media director, said in a statement.

The Dutch decision brings to an end a series of flip-flops over its participation, highlighting the divisive nature of the debate in the country and more broadly.

In August, the AVROTROS broadcaster, which selects the Dutch entry and broadcasts the show, had pulled out, saying the event can “no longer be considered neutral” given divisions over the Gaza war that was triggered by the Hamas-led 2023 invasion of southern Israel.

But a month later, NPO stepped in to replace AVROTROS, saying it would take on the responsibility, only to reverse course with its decision on Tuesday.

Jet de Ranitz, NPO’s executive chairman, acknowledged this would disappoint many Dutch Eurovision fans and stressed that the contest will still be aired on the public channels.

However, he said: “We must conclude that it is currently too early to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2027.”

“Due to the sensitivities surrounding the themes currently at play, we have decided to take a step back for the time being,” added De Ranitz.

Last month, NPO said it had decided to “carefully” return to the 2027 contest after “extensive discussions” with the European Broadcasting Union, noting that the “sensitivities have not gone away” that led to the initial boycott.

It is unclear what led to the reversal.

The Netherlands took part in a boycott of the 2026 competition along with Spain, Slovenia, Ireland and Iceland in protest of Israel’s inclusion.

Ireland has already announced it would not take part in the 2027 event, and the head of the Spanish public broadcaster has also come out in favor of an Israel boycott, though no final decision has been made.

Earlier this month, the Czech public broadcaster pulled out, but cited spending cuts as the reason.

Analysts have speculated that Slovenia is likely to return after its previous government, which was highly critical of Israel, was ousted and replaced with a new pro-Israel prime minister, although the broadcaster remains an independent body. Both Iceland and Slovenia recently asked the EBU for more time to make their decisions before the final deadline.

Next year’s contest, the world’s biggest live televised music event, will take place on May 15 in Bulgaria’s Black Sea city of Burgas.

It will be the first time the Balkan nation has hosted the contest, coming after Bulgarian singer Darina Yotova, known as Dara, won this year’s contest in the Austrian capital Vienna with the catchy floor-filler “Bangaranga.”

Israel’s Noam Bettan finished in second place with “Michelle,” a showing that alarmed many viewers who believed an Israeli win would further threaten the division surrounding the show.

Israel also finished in second place in the 2025 competition and fifth place in the 2024 contest, likely spurring the EBU announcement in August that countries involved in armed conflicts or part of a “sensitive geopolitical situation” would not automatically host the next contest if they won. When Ukraine won in 2022, the 2023 competition was hosted by the UK due to its ongoing war against Russia.

The past three Eurovision contests were beset by anti-Israel protests and heavy security amid threats to the Israeli delegation, with some booing and anti-Israel chanting also heard during the live broadcasts.

Since its launch in 1955, Eurovision has become the ultimate pop platform, catapulting Swedish icons ABBA to worldwide fame, as well as boosting the likes of Celine Dion, Cliff Richard and Olivia Newton-John.

The 2026 competition was watched by 131 million viewers, down 35 million on the year, apparently due to the five countries that boycotted it over Israel’s participation.