Germany should bow out of the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest if Israel is excluded, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Sunday, according to German newspaper Der Spiegel.
“If Israel is excluded, I would support not taking part,” Merz told German talk show host Caren Miosga of public broadcaster ARD.
He said that a potential boycott of Israel is a “scandal” that should not be “discussed at all. Israel has a place there,” he added.
The Chancellor’s comments came amid announcements last month by Ireland and the Netherlands that they will not participate in the competition if Israel takes part.
Spain and Slovenia have joined in the threat to withdraw if Israel participates.
The European Broadcasting Union stated that a special deliberation will be held in November in which member countries will vote on whether to include Israel in the European contest.
Participation in the Eurovision is voluntary and open to public service broadcasters that are members of the EBU—including Israel’s and Australia’s public broadcasters. The broadcasters independently select their country’s representative and song, with the ultimate authority over participation lying on the EBU.
According to an ARD poll, 65% of Germans oppose excluding Israeli artists and athletes from international events such as the Eurovision and sporting tournaments.
Eurovision is one of the most popular television events in the world, watched by 166 million people in 2025. It is scheduled to mark its 70th anniversary in Vienna next May.
The contests in Basel, Switzerland, this year and Malmö, Sweden, in 2024 were accompanied by large anti-Israel demonstrations over the war in Gaza.
Speaking last month on the subject, the CEO of Israel’s Kan public broadcaster, Golan Yochpaz, said that “Israel has been one of the most successful participants in the Eurovision Song Contest. There is no reason why Israel should not continue to be a significant part of this cultural event, which must not become political.”
Meanwhile, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that the premier had spoken to his German counterpart about the recent Trump administration plan to end the war in Gaza.
“We will continue to act resolutely until all the objectives of the war are achieved, including the return of all the hostages and the securing of Israel’s security,” Netanyahu was quoted as saying.
He moreover thanked Merz for Germany’s support for Israel.
Also on Monday, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said that the efforts to end the war in the Palestinian enclave were the most promising since the war was started by the Hamas-led attack on Israel’s western Negev on Oct. 7, 2023.
“For the first time in two years, it is not just about a ceasefire, but about a viable political solution. Israeli, Arab and Palestinian actors now share ideas on how things can continue in the Gaza Strip,” Wadephul told ARD, per Reuters.
Israeli and Hamas delegations are currently in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt for indirect talks regarding an agreement to swap the hostages for Palestinian terrorists in Israeli prisons.
