RTÉ to boycott Eurovision again due to "appalling and ongoing loss of lives in Gaza"

RTÉ will boycott the Eurovision Song Contest for the second year in a row, the Irish national broadcaster announced on Thursday, September 17.

“RTÉ is today confirming that its position regarding participation in the Eurovision Song Contest remains unchanged," RTÉ said in a statement on Thursday.

"RTÉ will not participate in the 2027 Eurovision Song Contest, nor will RTÉ broadcast the competition.

"RTÉ feels that Ireland’s participation cannot be justified given the appalling and ongoing loss of lives in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there which continues to put the lives of so many civilians at risk.

"RTÉ also remains deeply concerned by the continued denial of independent access to international journalists to the territory.”

Unlike last year, RTÉ's statement on Thursday did not explicitly mention Israel.

Responding to RTÉ's announcement, Martin Green CBE, Director of the Eurovision Song Contest, said on Thursday: “We regret that RTÉ will not be participating in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2027, but we fully respect their decision and recognise the huge contribution they have made to the Contest. They remain a valued part of our family and will be missed.

"The Eurovision Song Contest is at its best when broadcasters and their artists from different countries come together to share music, celebrate creativity and create connections between audiences. That power to bring people together is at the heart of what makes the Contest so special, and is even more important now in an increasingly difficult and divided world.

"All broadcasters decide on an annual basis to participate in the following year's Contest. We will remain in dialogue with RTÉ and hope to welcome them back to the Contest in the future."

The 71st Eurovision Song Contest will take place in Burgas, Bulgaria, in May 2027. As of September 1 this year, any song released commercially is eligible to compete.

Participation in the Eurovision Song Contest is open to members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which in Ireland includes RTÉ and Irish language network TG4. 

The Israel Public Broadcasting Corporation is also a member of the EBU.

Eurovision organizers said earlier this month that they "won't be revealing the list of broadcasters participating at Burgas 2027 until some time in the future," but did note that Denmark, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Luxembourg, Norway, San Marino, and Sweden have put the call-out for song submissions, and that Canada's CBC/Radio Canada will be making its Eurovision debut.

RTÉ News reported on Thursday that Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS has also said it will not participate in Eurovision 2027, with responsibility for any Dutch participation now returning to the NPO, the umbrella organisation which oversees public broadcasting in the Netherlands.

Ireland has been represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 58 times since its debut in 1965 and has won seven times, most recently in 1996.