Eurovision changes rules under Israel's 'pressure' - details

Eurovision is changing its voting rules after Israeli contestants twice came second thanks to viewer support. The EBU is introducing restrictions against 'politically motivated campaigns': in 2026 it cut the number of votes from 20 to 10, and now proposes moving voting online with one vote per viewer. The reform aims to reduce the impact of such campaigns, but its effect will only become clear at the 2027 contest in Burgas.

The organizers of the Eurovision Song Contest are changing voting rules after Israeli contestants twice in a row came second thanks to viewer support, which the EBU considers 'politically motivated'. In 2025, Yuval Raphael, who received only 15th place from the jury, rose to a final second place thanks to 297 points from viewers. At the time, according to the EBU, accounts linked to Israeli authorities urged using all 20 allowed votes. In 2026, the maximum number of votes was reduced to 10, and the KAN corporation received a warning after contestant Noam Betan urged giving all votes to Israel. Despite this, he also came second. Now the EBU proposes moving viewer voting entirely online, giving each viewer one vote that can be distributed among three countries. The effectiveness of the reform will become clear at Eurovision 2027, which will be held in Burgas. The article references the BBC.