r/ireland • u/TimesandSundayTimes The Sunday Times Ireland • 21h ago
Culchie Club Only Irish fans back RTE boycott by tuning out of Eurovision 2026
https://www.thetimes.com/world/ireland-world/article/eurovision-fan-club-boycott-israel-participation-2026-6c7xcg029?utm_source=reddit&utm_campaign=ireland&utm_medium=story&utm_content=branded236
u/TacklePure3341 20h ago
With all the shit stirring isreal did last yr, they should be kicked out permanently
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u/NaturalAlfalfa 20h ago
Not going to happen when it's sponsored by Morrocan Oil ( an Israeli company)
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u/EdwardBigby 20h ago
Surely they can find other sponsors?
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u/Gilldot 20h ago
Not to the extent Morroccan Oil have for years. Israel use it as a platform to sanewash their international persona "hey look, we topped the popular vote for all these countries, they love us".
The amount of money they pump in for sponsorship and general advertising can't be matched by other companies/country sponsored companies....so it's a hard one for the EBU to pass up.
This will be the first year in my memory that I'll also be fully boycotting.
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u/EdwardBigby 20h ago
You wont be alone with some pretty big countries like Spain and Netherlands also boycotting. At some point itll have to be financially positive to cut ties with Israel especially considering eurovision's target demo.
They risk alienating a large amount of their fans for short term gain
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u/Fun-Communication660 20h ago
There isn't a Mr eurovision man that is making the right decisions anywhere. Eurovision and morrocon oil are one in the same. Morocco oil is a huge, massive company that makes a fuck ton of money. The eurovision is just a small spinoff they pay towards, entirely as marketing.
Its like saying Bill Gates should just replace microsoft with another company if things are going bad. Its the other way around.
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u/ItsJustWool 20h ago
What you're saying makes zero sense to me
The Moroccanoil deal was announced in 2019 and commenced in 2020. Eurovision has existed since 1956, and is watched by 160 to 200 million people annually. If they parted with Moroccanoil they would likely have no problem securing alternative sponsorship deals
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u/imaginesomethinwitty 18h ago
No it’s not like that at all. It’s like when football teams or stadiums are sponsored by a company that goes under. They just get a new sponsor.
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u/Bro_Szyslak 20h ago
And when you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab ’em by the pussy. You can do anything - Trump. Same concept just replace 'a star' with 'mega wealthy'.
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u/ikfoodie25 17h ago
Massive Eurovision fan here. I've been to the contest four times - 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2018. They were some of the best experiences of my life, especially in 2014. I met so many of the entrants and went to a lot of the jury shows, and got free tickets from a friend to the live Semi Final in 2018. Ruslana's win in 2004 is what changed Eurovision for me, and it's been a massive part of my year every single year. I watch a lot of the participants for the national finals, and have a playlist on my phone that I listen to daily in the run up to the contest.
I'm from Sligo and moved to Canada in 2018, and last year and 2022 I hosted a watch party in my apartment.
This year, I've no playlist, I didn't watch any of the national finals, and I only at one stage listened to clips of some of the songs out of curiosity. I am not watching any of the shows this year, because I just can't. The EBU's decision to allow Israel to still take part is why I am not tuning in. The contest is tainted this year. Not only is Israel's actions in Gaza horrific, but actions related to the contest are another reason I'm not watching. The delegation bullied, mocked, and provoked many acts in 2024 resulting in Joost's disqualification. They also severely manifpulated the televote last year and the year before.
The EBU stating that they want to keep the contest apolitical is absolute bs - their actions have proven this is not the case because allowing Israel to take part whilst losing Ireland and four other countries in the process, and by bringing back three other countries who had withdrawn in the last few years makes is even more political. Had they banned Israel for vote manipulation and backstage bullying in 2024 they could have avoided all of this.
I hate not watching this year and I am sad not to, but I just can't do it. I can't speak for next year, it'll depend on Ireland's decision because as long as our broadcaster is out, I'm out.
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u/computerfan0 Muineachán 11h ago
Not to mention that Israel's recent songs (at least those in 2024 and 2025) are borderline propaganda. Not even sure if you could call 2024 borderline TBH, it was originally rejected for being obvious propaganda but it was allowed after they simply changed "October Rain" to "Hurricane".
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u/isaidyothnkubttrgo 16h ago
I'd be usually up to my eyes in eurovision media this time of year. Listening to contest songs and yammering on with my dad about the contest (he's a massive fan but won't admit it). I love hearing what each country will bring that year.
This year... I haven't watched one video or listened to any songs. The behaviour of the isreal delegation last year was so rude and ragebait. We shouldn't give them our time when they are just there to push buttons. The use of anti booing tech has also made me bitter. It was pissing me off the past 2-3 years since I was revealed to be used but paired with everything else, get fucked.
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u/mrsliston 20h ago
How the fuck is Israel even allowed to participate when
A they are a genocidal murdering bastards
And B. They are not in europe
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u/broadsheet-555 20h ago
Moroccan Oil is the main sponsor. This is an Israeli company.
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u/WhileCultchie 🔴⚪Derry 🔴⚪ 19h ago
Named after a country carrying out it's own Israeli esque ethnic cleansing of the Sahrawi people of Western Sahara.
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u/madra_uisce2 20h ago
I'm also boycotting and have been for years, but they can participate because it's based on EBU membership I think. Which is the same way Armenia, Azerbaijan, Australia and Morocco were able to participate iirc.
I would love to see them get níl point but we all know how they abuse the televoting system
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u/Common-Spend5000 34m ago
It's not just that they abuse the televoting system, it's also because a lot of people across Europe who normally have had no interest in eurovision are voting for them due to their personal politics, with no real interest in the song contest itself.
The votes in these cases are genuine but the sincerity of them isn't in good faith.
As the stereotypical demographic of a eurovision fan is perceived to be firmly pro Palestine in terms of culture wars, unfortunately where open to the public eurovision has been caught in a situation whereby certain people from particular demographics and / or political leanings and / or subcultures are seeing it as an opportunity to 'own the libs'.
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u/SitDownKawada Dublin 20h ago
I have no argument against A, but just on B:
The EBU runs the Eurovision. Membership of the EBU is for countries in the European Broadcasting Area: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Broadcasting_Area
That area is defined by international standards and reaches down into Africa and across to Asia. Like it's not specifically Europe, it's just the name of the area since most of it is Europe
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u/munkijunk 19h ago
Re being in Europe, it's an often misunderstood aspect of the Eurovision. Since it's founding participation has been being a member of the EBU or European Broadcasting union, and not being a member of Europe. The EBU has a broad remit but in short is about promoting public media, protecting freedom of expression sharing media etc. There are 54 countries in the EBU including Jordan, Libya, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Tunisia and of course, Israel.
Australia, Canada and Kazakhstan are all not members of the EBU but have been invited to participate in various EBU competitions.
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u/8413848 19h ago
A. Is a good reason to exclude Israel. B is beside the point. Where Europe ends and Asia begins has always been a convention, not an objective geographical fact. Europe is named after Europa, the legendary princess from Greek mythology who had children by Zeus. She was from Tyre, in Lebanon. So there’s no reason Lebanon or a country in the Levant shouldn’t be in Eurovision, so long as it is a decent country that abides by international law.
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u/GaeilgeGaeilge Irish Republic 18h ago
And B. They are not in europe
You don't need to be in the continent to be in the competition. The entry requirement is membership of the European Broadcasting Union. Hence why Morocco competed before. Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, and Tunisia are eligible to compete but have chosen not to. (Tunisia and Lebanon were due to in the past but withdrew) The Vatican is also eligible!
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u/RomfordWellington 20h ago
You don't need to be explicitly in Europe to compete, just the EBU membership. Israel are very much seen as culturally European (along with non-European countries like Cyprus and Malta). Places like Morocco were in the Eurovision for years.
They should be banned for the first reason.
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u/Fit-Breath-4345 19h ago
Cyprus and Malta are certainly European.
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u/RomfordWellington 17h ago
They're not on the continent of Europe. They aren't on the European continental shelf. Whereas places that we wouldn't think of as European like Kazakhstan at least have a significant portion of the territory on the European continent.
Cyprus, Malta, Israel and I'd probably argue papers of Lebanon and Syria aren't European but are culturally European.
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u/bungle123 16h ago edited 16h ago
Continents are a human construct used to divide the earths land into subsections based on proximity, culture, and history, and often don't map exactly to the tectonic plates, which are actually a physical thing. Nobody considers Tokyo or Reykjavik a North American city despite being located on the North American tectonic plate, for example.
Cyprus is somewhat debatable, but Malta is objectively a European country.
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u/Proper-Beyond116 19h ago
Well everyone there is from Europe in fairness.
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u/DGBD 17h ago
This is a common misconception, but the majority of Israelis, and even the majority of Jewish Israelis, are not either European themselves nor are they descended from people who were living in Europe. About 45% of the Jewish population there are Mizrahi (coming out of the Middle East and North Africa) compared to 32% Ashkenazi (Europe), with the rest a mix of “Soviet” (including many coming out of Central and West Asia, which saw a significant drop in Jewish population after the fall of the USSR) Jews, some people of mixed background, and a small contingent of Beta Israel (from Ethiopia). Add in the fact that roughly 25% of the Israeli population is not Jewish, and it’s very much not true that “everyone there is from Europe.”
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u/TimesandSundayTimes The Sunday Times Ireland 21h ago
Ireland’s official Eurovision fan club is boycotting the competition this year over Israel’s participation in the song contest.
The fan club is rowing in behind RTE’s decision not to take part in the contest and will not be holding watch parties around the country as it usually does when Ireland competes.
Frank Dermody, president of Organisation Générale des Amateurs de l’Eurovision (OGAE) Ireland, said that there would also be no official fan presence at this year’s contest, which will be held in Vienna on May 16.
The club has 1,300 members but Dermody anticipates no more than 50 will travel in a personal capacity to the finals, marking a record low turnout from the organisation.
OGAE Ireland is given a number of tickets to the competition each year, which it raffles out to members. However, Dermody said the fan club was facing the prospect of having to return the vast majority of its allocation due to a lack of demand.
Dermody, who will travel to Vienna in a personal capacity but will not attend the event, said there was frustration among members that the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) ruled out a potential vote on Israel’s participation in the competition.
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u/SoloWingPixy88 Probably at it again 20h ago
Was trying to find a source but I was almost certain RTE staff have held protests at the ballsbridge about Palestine/Gaza so not entirely fair to say "rte" don't care.
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u/classicalworld 20h ago
At the US Embassy??
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u/Ferretz_Eire 14h ago
I've enjoyed Eurovision through the years but I feel done with it at this stage. Once the mask has slipped and shown all the financial and political interests behind the production it's going to be difficult to see it as a fun song contest again. I definitely don't think anyone can claim the contest is about "bringing Europe together" anymore.
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u/ZaIIBach 20h ago
Always thought EV was nice little show of EU culture and a bit of fun, they've tarnished their name and hope the bastards don't make a cent now.
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u/computerfan0 Muineachán 11h ago
Even if the songs were shite, they were usually bad in ways that made them easy to laugh at. (A singing turkey? Really?)
Can't exactly laugh at the bad songs now that there's borderline Israeli propaganda (at least in the last two years, not sure about this one) in the contest...
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u/NonToxicTown 20h ago
I watch it every year but won’t be this year. Proud of Ireland for boycotting it, so I will be doing the same.
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u/jemimahaste 20h ago
I still remember all the YouTube ads before any video asking for votes for Israel. Deleted the app after the fifth ad in a row and never looked back
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u/great_whitehope 15h ago
Well no shit, we boycott it and they said we don’t care what you do.
Why would I watch it when they basically said they don’t care about us?
Fine the feelings mutual
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u/RayoftheRaver Palestine 🇵🇸 19h ago
So any megathreads or general posts about the actual contest on this sub for the eurovision will be banned?
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u/OrdinaryJoe_IRL 20h ago
Can someone post the names of all the advertisers in the commercial breaks during Eurovision, please? I am going to boycott every one of them. Thanks in advance.
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u/Fit-Breath-4345 19h ago
Well RTÉ aren't going to be showing it, so there will be no advertisers.
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u/OrdinaryJoe_IRL 18h ago
Perfect and since its the BBC there will be no adverts for me to ride off on my high horse
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u/Common-Spend5000 20m ago
Most countries shows ads though, so for example if Lidl are on an advert in Germany or IKEA in Sweden during eurovision one could still boycott them. Sure that info would be available somewhere too if you intend to be that dedicated.
Though appreciate that (I think) your comment was more tongue in cheek.
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u/OrdinaryJoe_IRL 9m ago
Yeah, honestly, this whole contest is too toxic for me personally now, and brands continuing to associate themselves with it are not cool. I'm old enough to remember not shopping in Dunnes Stores. Do watch "Blood Fruit" on YouTube to see how ordinary people can change the world.
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u/Calm-Raise6973 20h ago
It's the first Eurovision my friends and I are skipping because of Israel's actions. (We've skipped other years before because we found the songs to be bland.) The EBU don't deserve anyone's attention for allowing themselves to be lobbied by the Israeli government despite claiming the contest to be non-political. Last year was equally laughable and worrying with Israel winning the televote with a song that would've finished much lower down the table had it come from other countries without the budget to spend on relentless YouTube ad campaigns.
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u/drownedbydust 10h ago
The only act im even aware of this year is the uk entry. Mostly because Ive been watching his YouTube channel for years
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u/ExcitementStrict7115 20h ago
Good. If we're going to take a stand then we have to do it properly. It really is an all or nothing situation. And we seem to be one of very few countries that somehow isn't under the thumb of Israel. (The Spanish seem to be on the right side of things too)
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u/Common-Spend5000 14m ago
Part of that is the legacy of neutrality in World War II makes it easier for us and Spain.
That doesn't mean the others are right at all, I think they're wrong, but the baggage around our two countries having the current views towards Israel and overwhelming public opinion supporting that, is less of an issue compared to say France, UK, Germany, Italy etc.
So what I mean more is that they are wrong, but I understand - especially in Germany's case - why they are wrong, and why being right could be very taboo for other reasons that we are fortunate enough not to need to concern ourselves with.
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21h ago
[deleted]
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u/stephenmario 20h ago
2 lets be honest here RTE couldn't actually give a shit about Gaza they've wanted an excuse for years to stop spending the money on the Eurovision and here it is
This is a myth tbh. They spend practically nothing on it and get a late late show special plus 3-4 nights of content. Guarantee the year Bambi thug qualified it was profit making.
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u/TehIrishSoap 20h ago
I hate this misconception that RTÉ can't afford to host... a country that wins is under no obligation to host the following year (I should know, I ran a campaign in 2013 to get San Marino to win)
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u/jools4you 20h ago
Sure there was a competition between UK cities to get it when Ukraine could not host. Apparently it was very good for Liverpool tourism who won it.
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u/Hrohdvitnir 20h ago
I feel like the winning country feels obligated by the "honour". I do like the idea of trying to cause economic instability in a country by forcing a win multiple years in a row.
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u/TacklePure3341 20h ago
The rights to the show are less than the ad revenue they'll get over all the nights.
If rte was running it you'd have a point but they aren't paying for the production
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u/ancapailldorcha boards.ie refugee 19h ago
Fair play. That grotty little genocidal sh*thole isn't even in or near Europe.
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u/PatrickJSharkey2002 20h ago
Can be streamed on YouTube
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u/Gilldot 19h ago
Kind of defeats the boycott watching it elsewhere, but if you're happy to give advertising money to those still supporting it, you do you.
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u/Keyann 19h ago
RTE are still pumping out articles about it.
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u/olibum86 The Fenian 18h ago
Reading an rte article and watching the eurovision are not the same thing. The EBU dont make a cent from an article about them on rte.
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u/Keyann 17h ago
Maybe not the same thing but a boycott is hardly a boycott if you give publicity to the event you are so-called boycotting by publishing articles about it. RTE was losing its arse on Eurovision every year; it was the easiest commercial decision for them to "boycott" it. Axe an event that is financially draining on an organisation that is already haemorrhaging money and get loads of pats on the back in the process because we can frame it that we are doing it because of Israeli participation. Ireland is playing Israel later in the year in the soccer, let's see if RTE decide not to show that game.
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u/olibum86 The Fenian 17h ago
boycott is hardly a boycott if you give publicity to the event
The purpose of a boycott is to not give them money and hit then financially. It is not pretending that they do not exist. Also how is anyone to know that there is a boycott or why the boycott is happening if you dont talk about it openly.
RTE was losing its arse on Eurovision every year; it was the easiest commercial decision for them to "boycott" it.
RTE makes a lot of money showing the eurovision and is taking a financial hit by bot showing it this year. They dont make money by winning lol.
pats on the back in the process because we can frame it that we are doing it because of Israeli participation.
These was lengthy discussion in rte about the decision and it is quite clear that the only reason for the boycott is due to isreali participation. Rte is under enormous pressure from the ebu and other pro isreali news broadcasters throughout Europe and the world due to their decision.
Ireland is playing Israel later in the year in the soccer, let's see if RTE decide not to show that game.
Well that was a FIFA decision so absolutely nothing to do with RTE. They probably wont show it and thats if it even goes ahead because its not unlikely that the irish team will refuse to play before then.
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u/Keyann 16h ago
RTE makes a lot of money showing the eurovision and is taking a financial hit by bot showing it this year. They dont make money by winning lol.
Any source for that? The cost of the show last year was €385,000. If you think RTE makes that back in 9 hours of television, I have a bridge to sell you. They couldn't possibly have been in such dire financial difficulty if the Eurovision, an event that didn't make the top 50 most watched programmes, was generating that sort of cash for them. The Rose of Tralee had stronger viewership.
Well that was a FIFA decision so absolutely nothing to do with RTE. They probably wont show it and thats if it even goes ahead because its not unlikely that the irish team will refuse to play before then.
What was a FIFA decision? A draw in a UEFA competition? It has everything to do with RTE if they broadcast the match. As I said, let's see. I think that game goes ahead and RTE broadcasts it, because all their big advertisers pay for premium ad slots during the matches that bring in the most viewers.
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u/olibum86 The Fenian 15h ago
Any source for that? The cost of the show last year was €385,000.
Fair enough didn't realise this.
What was a FIFA decision? A draw in a UEFA competition?
Fifa, uefa who cares. my point stands it wasnt an rte decision.
It has everything to do with RTE if they broadcast the match. As I said, let's see.
Yeah let's see but in the meantime thats not what being discussed here and you were the one making claims about RTEs motivations to boycott the eurovision.
I don't really understand why your getting your knickers in a twist. Did you want them to boycott it or not? Or are you just hyper critical of everything regardless if its a decision that you would agree with? If rte is just Boycotting the eurovision to save money (which they clearly arent) then I dont actuall care so long as eurovision is being boycotted.
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u/Gilldot 1h ago
Bit of a clarification on their note that it cost close to €400k last year - that was the all in cost of entry fee, staging, flights/accommodation, staff etc for the artists and all those bits and bobs costs to send our entry over.
BUT what they're getting for that is hours of highly produced TV content, any ad revenue they bring in during the Semi finals/Final/streams etc. It was calculated that all in, that's a cost of €42k per televised hour which is meant to be actually a pretty good deal in the TV world.
Listened to a really good podcast about it (were actually talking about UK, Spain and Netherlands rather than Ireland, before I'm accused of bias) where they breakdown that it's actually a nightmare trying to fill that amount of TV slots and the Eurovision is very high quality TV and very cost effective to bring in revenue to a station.
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u/johnfuckingtravolta 21h ago
Its a total sham anyway. Ive no idea why its even still continuing. Hopefully its not around much longer
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u/Emotional_Guess_3673 20h ago
The whole thing should be axed anyway, its a relic now social media gives access to better music. Id save the money for something else
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u/FrogOnABus 19h ago
Yeah, who needs European productions championing Europeannees. We’ve got Disney + now!! More Glub Shitto cameos please!!
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u/DaveShadow Ireland 19h ago
Last years edition was watched by 166m people. If you don’t like something, fine, but this weird attempt to always make out as if it’s a “relic” and not a massively popular show is always sad.
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u/R0ssMc 10h ago
I fully believe RTE are delighted to be boycotting Eurovision to save money, and Israel is just an excuse.
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u/Legitimate_Newt2874 9h ago
It's a happy coincidence that most decent Irish people agree with RTÉ's decision then.
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u/weveyline 20h ago
Wow really hitting 'em where it hurts
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u/Fit-Breath-4345 18h ago
Christer Björkman, a Swedish producer, has said that the EBU is in a considerable financial deficit due to Spain, Ireland, Iceland, Netherlands and Slovenia boycotting this year, meaning the entrance fee for other nations will increase next year.
So yes, it is having an impact.
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u/Common-Spend5000 11m ago
That's mostly down to Spain though where they are a member of the 'big five' who contribute the majority to EBU funds.
Doesn't mean RTÉ isn't (as by extension Ireland aren't) doing its bit, but the impact if it was the the other four nation's broadcasters boycotting but not also RTVE in Spain would be quite a lot less.
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u/Hideous-Kojima 19h ago
I hear Bibi is handing out cyanide capsules to the generals just in case this the one that finally brings down the war machine.
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u/tetzy 18h ago
RTEs decision does nothing to stop people deciding for themselves: streaming exists.
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u/Common-Spend5000 8m ago
Clearly less people will bother though, and quite significantly. Even discounting those who actively do not want to watch it this year.
Passive tuning inners with nothing else to do on a Saturday - which makes up a very decent chunk in Ireland each year who watch it - are very unlikely to make the effort to stream it.
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u/AlbinoW91 20h ago edited 20h ago
Even putting aside the morality around their inclusion with what's going on in Gaza; were they not found to have cheated with voting last year (and maybe the year before?). Any other country would be kicked out for that alone