The worst predictions came true: RTVE has withdrawn Spain’s participation in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026. The president of the Corporation, José Pablo López, made good on his threat and will boycott the competition due to the presence of Israel. Now it seems that The channel has no problem with the Hebrew country’s participation in other events.
In the debate launched by the channel after the first day of the EBU General Assembly, held on December 4 and 5 in Geneva, it was highlighted that the measures adopted were “insufficient”.
This was emphasized by the Secretary General of the Entity, Alfonso Morales, considering that the Israeli public channel KAN was not sanctioned.
“We would like to express our serious doubts about the participation of Israeli television KAN in Eurovision 2026. The situation in Gaza, despite the ceasefire and approval of the peace process, and the use of the contest for political purposes by Israel, make it increasingly difficult to maintain Eurovision as a neutral cultural event,” he reported.
“We should not accept double standards. Neutrality and transparency are a common objective to guarantee a truthful result that is respectful of the public and citizens,” he maintained.
José Pablo López himself It called into question the credibility of the EBU and the vote that prevented the expulsion of the KAN. “It was not spontaneous, but Israel maneuvered in the shadows for months,” he wrote in his X account.
“What looked like a democratic debate in Geneva, It was just a prank concocted in the offices. The EBU’s main argument has been destroyed: the neutrality of Eurovision is guaranteed neither before nor now,” he said.
“The Israeli government will continue to use the festival as it sees fit. But for the moment the EBU remains silent, let’s see if the shame passes and we continue with our business,” he exclaimed.
EBU headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
EFE
López highlighted the pan-European organization, saying there was “consented to very serious attacks against RTVE”, given that the channel had been labeled “hate mongers”. “They looked the other way,” he denounced.
The Olympic Games
A very controversial reaction which contrasts with the apparent good understanding between RTVE and the EBU regarding the broadcast of the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo.
Despite Israel will participate in this sporting competitionone of the most followed in terms of audiences, it seems that the president of the Corporation and the Entity itself are not bothered by the presence of the Hebrew country at the Olympic Games.
“Not only do we have the rights, but we also have no time limit. We will be able to exploit the Winter Olympic Games as a whole thanks to the joint acquisition agreement with the EBU,” declared the president of RTVE within the Joint Parliamentary Control Committee of the Company on November 27 in the Senate.
“At the EBU, in addition to Eurovision, we do something else“, he added with a certain tone of humor, proudly announcing “very broad television, radio and digital coverage.” “More than 40 professionals will come to make it happen,” he announced.
Opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games.
A curious contrast with Eurovision. Even if RTVE has space for its own production, cannot selectively “erase” a country or certain athletes, as this would constitute a violation of the non-discrimination principles of the Olympic movement.
So, if you want to stream the entire opening ceremony of the Games, cannot remove the presence of the Hebrew country. The paradox therefore occurs in front of Eurovision.
There was no mention within the Joint Commission of the Israeli presence in Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo 2026, but yes in the question of the Song Festival.
The question of media coverage of the Winter Games was raised by PSOE senator Paula Alicia Somalo. In his speech to the Senate, there was no mention of the presence of a country that only seems to bother at Eurovision.
Israel will host three athletes: two for alpine skiing and one for figure skating. “RTVE plays an irreplaceable role, because it guarantees that a girl or boy from a small town or neighborhood has the same chances of discovering sporting references,” said Somalo.
IOC President Kirsty Coventry in an archive image.
Without complaining about the presence of Israeli athletes, it seems that Somalo He was not afraid that minors could have Mariia Seniuk as a referenceHebrew figure skater who will fight for a medal in Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo.
The same can be said about the 2026 World Cup.. Israel was eliminated from the tournament by finishing third in its group, behind Norway and Italy.
However, had it qualified, RTVE faced the dilemma of broadcasting the matches Israel would have participated in had it faced Spain.
RTVE in the two sporting events only has power over broadcasting rights, it does not have decision-making power. But that did not prevent him from requesting the issuance of the two quoteswhose audiences will benefit RTVE.
Although Pressure was put on the IOC to expel Israel, which ignored the protests.. In the case of the International Olympic Committee, he publicly reiterated that the Israeli and Palestinian committees “comply” with the Olympic Charter.
Yes it existed a movement of the Sánchez government and the Superior Sports Council to exclude the Hebrew country from international sports competitions. Prosecutions that fell on deaf ears.
Despite the failure, There has been no boycott movement aimed at removing Spanish athletes from the Olympic Games. from Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo.
2026 FIFA World Cup
FIFA also came under pressure to expel Israel. The Federation claimed that it did not have the capacity to “resolve geopolitical problems”, maintains the Hebrew team. Faced with this fiasco, there was no boycott movement from the Spanish national team or the RFEF.
Likewise, it seems that human rights only matter when it comes to israel. RTVE had no problem broadcasting Spain’s matches during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Organizations such as Amnesty International or Human Rights Watch documented for years how Qatar violated human rightsnotably with the exploitation of immigrant workers for the construction of infrastructure for the football tournament.
There have also been no problems providing coverage of the sport in a country where civil liberties are severely restricted.with structural discrimination against women or how the LGBT community is persecuted with prison sentences of seven years or the death penalty.
With what, it seems that the rejection of Israel focuses only on Eurovision. A strange paradox in today’s RTVE.
A rejection of Israel, a minority within the EBU. Of the 1,122 votes in the General Assembly, 738 were in favor of the changes, 264 against and 120 abstentions. This represents only 23.53% of the votes. A failure impossible to hide.
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