Ireland’s public broadcaster (RTE) has confirmed that Ireland will not participate in the 2027 Eurovision Song Contest and that it will not broadcast the competition, as it did the last edition together with Iceland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Spain.
In a statement, the Irish broadcaster said its position on participating in the contest “remains unchanged,” citing the loss of life in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis.
Likewise, RTE has been “deeply concerned” about the denial of access to international journalists to the territory.
As reported by the network itself, in response to its decision, the director of the Eurovision Song Contest, Martin Green, has stated that the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) regretted that the network would not participate in 2027, but that they “fully respect its decision.”
“They remain a valued part of our family and we will miss them,” said Green, adding: “We will continue to engage with RTÉ and look forward to welcoming them back to the competition in the future.”
This decision follows RTE’s withdrawal from the 2026 contest that took place in Vienna, Austria, after the EBU confirmed that Israeli public broadcaster KAN could participate. RTE also chose not to broadcast the contest.
Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS has also announced that it will not participate in Eurovision 2027. The EBU has not yet announced the final list of countries that will participate in the contest.
Ireland first participated in Eurovision in 1965 and has won the contest seven times. Her most recent victory came in 1996, when Eimear Quinn won with ‘The Voice’.