Austria doubles down: Israel “belongs” at Eurovision 2026 as Vienna chases record-breaking line-up
Austria has decided that if Eurovision 2026 is going to flirt with political meltdown, it might as well do it with good manners. During a press event in Vienna, ORF Director-General Roland Weißmann defended Israel’s participation in next year’s contest, calmly insisting that Eurovision is “the biggest entertainment show in the world”, not a geopolitical battleground. He said it with that annoyingly serene Austrian confidence that makes everyone else wonder if they should have prepared better notes.
The situation is anything but calm. Spain, Ireland and several other broadcasters have hinted at boycotting the contest should Israel perform in Vienna, citing the ongoing war in Gaza. Weißmann, however, urged patience and, yes, diplomacy, revealing that the final decision lies with the EBU General Assembly, set for 4 and 5 December, where broadcasters will vote on new rules. What rules? He wouldn’t say. “That’s for the EBU to announce,” he noted, in the tone of a man who definitely knows more than he’s allowed to admit.
His stance is unequivocal: Israel should perform in Vienna. “Israel belongs there, naturally,” he said, reminding the room that Eurovision is a contest run by public broadcasters, not by governments. A polite way of saying: the ORF won’t be chasing anyone out of the arena.
As the political storm brews, the ORF is busy flexing its organisational muscles. Weißmann proudly announced plans to gather a record number of participating countries, aiming to surpass the current maximum of 43. And the early signs are promising: Bulgaria, Romania and Moldova, all absent in recent years, want back in. Then he dropped the sentence no one expected: “Hurra, hurra – Canada!”, confirming that the North American giant is formally pushing to join Eurovision 2026.
Meanwhile, Vienna’s preparations are already in full motion. There will be 90,000 tickets, released through a two-phase system designed to avoid chaos (or at least contain it). Registration opens on 24 November on the ORF and EBU websites, with the actual sale following later. Fans have already begun sharpening their credit cards.
The ORF is also looking for 800 volunteers, stand-ins for rehearsals, and the acts for Vienna Calling, Austria’s national final, whose selection process begins this weekend. Even the iconic postcards are getting a nostalgic makeover: artists filmed in their home countries, digitally transported into Austrian landscapes, and physical postcards sold as collector items. It’s a sentimental touch for a show that has, in recent years, looked more like a tech demo than a song contest.
What remains a total mystery is the stage design and the hosts. Weißmann simply teased that last year’s host city, Basel, was “amazing” but could be “topped”. Classic Austrian understatement wrapped in smug confidence.
With 175 days to go before the first semi-final, Vienna finds itself exactly where Eurovision thrives: impeccably organised on the outside and quietly explosive on the inside. Austria insists that diplomacy will smooth things over. The rest of Europe, meanwhile, is clutching its pearls.
But in the end, this is Eurovision. And Vienna knows perfectly well that the show shines brightest when everything else is burning just a little.
Source: Kurier
