Eurovision Changes Its Rules: Win the Contest, But Maybe Not the Right to Host It
The organisation behind the Eurovision Song Contest has changed its rules: if a country is involved in a war, it cannot host the competition the following year, even if it wins. The European Broadcasting Union, or EBU, approved the change after gathering feedback from participating broadcasters following Eurovision 2026 in Vienna, according to BBC News.
The new rule goes further than just active war. A winning country can also be blocked from hosting if a "sensitive geopolitical situation" affects the security or stability of the country or its surrounding region. The EBU is the alliance of public broadcasters that runs Eurovision. By using broad language, it gives itself the flexibility to judge each situation individually rather than waiting for a formal declaration of war.
The rule change has been widely understood as a response to Israel's continued participation in the contest, amid ongoing criticism of its military actions in Gaza and the broader Middle East. Israel's Noam Bettan finished second at Eurovision 2026 with the song "Michelle," the second year in a row an Israeli entry came in as runner-up. That close result has raised concerns: some participating broadcasters have privately worried about the safety of staging Eurovision in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv if Israel were to win in the future.
Pressure on the EBU over Israel's involvement has been growing. Last November, after a failed attempt to have Israel suspended from the contest entirely, five broadcasters announced they would boycott Eurovision, including Spain's RTVE and Ireland's RTÉ. The suspension attempt failed, but the boycotts signalled that a meaningful number of public broadcasters were ready to push harder rather than accept things as they were. The EBU has had to balance its principle of including everyone against the reputational and security risks of a contested participant getting close to winning.
Ukraine is also directly affected by the new rules. The country has been at war since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. That same year, the Ukrainian group Kalush Orchestra won Eurovision, which led the EBU to conduct a "full assessment and feasibility study" to decide whether the 2023 contest could take place in Kyiv. Organisers ultimately decided the security risks were too high, and the United Kingdom stepped in to host in Liverpool on Ukraine's behalf.
That 2022 situation is the model the new rules now make official. Before, the EBU had the power to judge whether a country was suitable to host, but there was no written rule saying a country at war could not do so. The 2023 Kyiv decision was made through a one-off evaluation. The new rules create a permanent disqualification trigger, so there is no need for a special assessment every time a winning country is in a conflict zone.
The "sensitive geopolitical situation" clause is broader than it might look. A country does not have to be directly fighting in a war to be affected. If the region around a country is unstable, the EBU could use this clause to block it from hosting. How the EBU uses that flexibility will be watched closely, especially by the broadcasters that have already shown they are willing to withdraw.
The broader context here is an institution trying to prevent a crisis before it happens rather than dealing with one under pressure. The 2023 Kyiv relocation went smoothly, but it took significant effort and caused friction between the EBU and Ukrainian officials who initially insisted the contest could be held safely. By writing the disqualification into the rules, the EBU removes ambiguity. It also shifts the political burden: instead of the EBU making a judgement call after a country wins, the rules settle the question in advance, which may protect the organisation from accusations of bias.
For Israel, the practical effect is a limit. Even if an Israeli entry wins the combined public and jury vote, the contest will not be held on Israeli soil while the country remains in armed conflict. For Ukraine, the rules make official what already happened in practice. For the EBU's standing with the broadcasters that boycotted, the change shows responsiveness without taking the most drastic step of suspending a country entirely, something the governing body has so far declined to do.
Separately, the EBU confirmed on 13 August that Burgas will host the 71st Eurovision Song Contest in 2027. The announcement, made jointly with Bulgarian broadcaster BNT, followed a selection process that narrowed the field from four candidate cities — Sofia, Varna, Burgas, and Plovdiv — to a final choice between Sofia and Burgas. The mayor of Burgas had publicly campaigned for the Black Sea city to host shortly after Bulgaria's Eurovision victory in May.
The 2027 contest in Burgas will be the first time Bulgaria hosts Eurovision, and it will take place under a rulebook that now treats world events as a standing factor in deciding where the competition can be held.
