Eurovision to bar war-hit countries from hosting
The Eurovision organizers announced a rules change on Aug 12.
Eurovision Song Contest organizers announced on Aug. 12 that they were excluding any country in an armed conflict from hosting the competition and increased the minimum age of competitors.
While they did not mention any country by name, Israel, which has been at war in Gaza since 2023, came close to winning the competition in both 2025 and 2026, ultimately finishing second on each occasion.
Under the old rules, the winning country normally hosts the following year’s competition.
