Eurovision to bar countries at war from hosting

Eurovision Song Contest organisers announced rule changes on Wednesday excluding any country in an armed conflict from hosting the competition and increasing the minimum age of competitors.While they did not mention any country by name, Israel, which has been at war in Gaza since 2023, came close to winning the competition in both 2025 and 2026, ultimately finishing second on each occasion.Under the old rules, the winning country normally hosts the following year’s competition.Under the new rules, “the winning broadcaster will automatically be ineligible to host the contest if an armed conflict, a sensitive geopolitical situation, or any other situation materially affects the security, safety or stability of their state or immediate region”, they said in a statement.In a first, five countries – Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Iceland – boycotted the 2026 edition in Vienna over Israel’s participation. They said they could not take part alongside Israel because of its war in Gaza, triggered by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.Noam Bettan from Israel (centre) reacts as the points are awarded during the Grand Final of the 70th Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, Austria, in May. Photo: APMartin Green, director of the Eurovision Song Contest, said in a statement that the changes had been guided by feedback from member countries.