What Israel does in a “Europe” competition

On paper is the song festival. In practice, Eurovision has been much more years ago. There is music, dance, lights and the profusion of brightness and expected eccentricity in any spectacle worth its salt; But also political. Increasingly. The 2025 edition has left a clear example on the account of Israel (already It happened in 2024 either Three years agowith Russia) and reverges a question that usually arises every year: if Israel is a country of Western Asia (geographically speaking), why do you participate in Eurovision? Moreover, why is it part of UEFA or is he a member of European associations in sports such as swimming?

And above all … does it make sense that it is so?

Music, politics and flags. Although on Saturday he stroked the victory thanks to TelevotoIsrael’s passage through Eurovision has been marked by controversy, just as the 2024the first after the Gaza conflict initiated in October 2023. His representative, Yuval Raphael, a victim of Hamas attacks, has monopolized headlines. And most did not focus precisely on their music.

The organization of the festival has expelled spectators for showing Palestinian flags and has been engaged in a Sour controversy With RTVE for his comments on Gaza’s conflict during retransmissions, nothing compared to what Belgian TV did, which directly chose not to broadcast Raphael’s performance.

Looking back. Israel may have monopolized the spotlights EUROVISIVES This edition, but is not a newcomer to the festival. On the contrary. Although Eurovision is organized by the European Radiodifusion Union And that name can lead us to think about the EU or at most in the European continent, Israel, a country in Western Asia, has been part of its history for more than half a century.

The country debuted in 1973. And it hasn’t been bad. Saturday remained In second placebut he has won four times. The last one relatively recently, in 2018, with Netta, which explains that a year later the festival It was celebrated in Tel Aviv. And yes, on that occasion too Voices sounded They encouraged boycott.

But is not a European festival? Yes. And no. The festival is effectively called Eurovision and organizes it, but the latter is an alliance that goes far beyond strictly geographical Europe: it groups 113 organizations of more than 50 countries and 31 associates of Asia, Africa, Australasia and Las Américas. Membership, like Remember the Uer itselfis aimed at entities whose countries are members of the European Council or are within the European broadcasting areaa wide umbrella under which some countries from outside Europe are located.

The result is that among the 113 members that make up the Uuer are French, German, Dutch, Czech or RTVE organizations, but also Cyprus entities (which although it is part of the EU belongs to the Southwest Asian), Algeria, Jordan, Libya, Egypt or Morocco. Also Israel, which allowed him to debut at the Eurovision song festival in the 1970s.

Eurovision and much more. The Uuer is not the only European forum in which Israel has made a hole. Something similar occurs with UEFA, the Union of European Soccer Associations. Among their National Federations We find the Spanish, English, Lithuanian, German, Belgian … and the Israeli. Also Kazakhstan, Türkiye or Russia, although in February three years ago UEFA and FIFA They decided to expel her.

Why is Israel included in that list? On its website, UEFA explains that Israel became an active member of the Asian Soccer Confederation in 1956, but in 1974 he decided to “abandon her by political reasons“. The reality, Remember DWIt is that in the Arab and Muslim world there were countries that refused to compete with their representatives, such as Türkiye, Indonesia or Sudan. That tension resulted in A vote In 1974 that ended with Israel outside the Asian Federation.

In European competitions. In the early 90s, he played regularly in Europe and, after what UEFA calls a “Prolonged process”its federation ended up becoming a member of the organization shortly after, in 1994. MacCabi Haifa Or Hapoel Tel-Aviv, for example, have competed in European tournaments. It is not a rarity of football. In handball, athletics either swimming Israel is also a member of associations based in the old continent.

As a backdrop (and as it happens in Eurovision) there is much more than sport: behind the peculiar role of Israel is its complex history, its controversial political role and tensions with other Muslim neighboring nations that can go back to the foundation of the state of Israel, In 1948. These tensions have marked their recent history at the geopolitical level, but has often spread to other areas such as sports, which has led him to look at the West.

A potato (increasingly) hot. The funny thing is that this potato has not stopped heating, especially after the beginning of the conflict in Gaza in October 2023 and the death of tens of thousands of Palestinians. The Eurovision Festival leaves the most recent example, but not the only one. Your participation in the contest already generated controversy last year and in 2019 the boycott movement, divestment and sanctions (BDS) even cheer up To artists and chains to ignore the final held in Tel Aviv.

In the sports field, Israel’s participation also It was marked in part by The controversy In the Olympic Games and several associations of the Middle East They have claimed Already FIFA to go to the country in international football.

The question. The scenario is further complicated by the case of Russia, than after starting the invasion of Ukraine, in February 2022, it did receive a severe response from international organizations. The Uer He separated her of Eurovision, despite its warm initial reaction claiming that the festival is a “cultural event of a non -political nature”, and UEFA and FIFA adopted A similar measureclosing the doors of the World Cup and The Euroleague to the country of Putin. Your athletes too They stayed out of the Olympic Games held in 2024 in Paris.

The different response to Israel and Russia has stirred The debate on how entities such as the UER should react. Another of the keys on which has been left over the table after Eurovision is Israel’s participation in European competitions. Not because it is a politically controversial state, but because Netanyahu.

Images | EBU/ Sarah Louise Bennett, Joshjdss (Flickr), EBU/ ALMA-BENGTSSON

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