Vienna: Spain declared on Friday its withdrawal from the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest, which is set to take place in the Austrian capital, in response to the decision to allow the Israeli occupation to participate in the event.
According to Kuwait News Agency, Spain's Public Radio (RTVE) announced that the country decided to pull out of the contest following a vote by the European Broadcasting Union's general assembly, which favored retaining the Israeli occupation's participation. This decision was made despite Spain and seven other European countries advocating for a secret ballot and a public declaration to cancel Tel Aviv's participation due to the ongoing situation in Gaza.
RTVE stated that it will refrain from broadcasting any news related to the musical contest, even though the event enjoys widespread popularity in Spain.
Meanwhile, Jose Pablo Lopez Sanchez, chairman of Spain's national public broadcasting authority, RTVE (Radio Television Espanola), expressed on his official X account that the Eurovision Song Contest is a "festival dominated by geopolitical interests amid internal rifts." Spain had previously announced in September that it would not participate in the 2026 contest.
Spain is one of the five countries that typically qualify automatically for the finals, alongside the UK, France, Italy, and Germany.