Austrian singer Johannes Pietsch, known as JJ representing Austria with the song "Wasted Love" celebrates with the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest trophy after winning the grand final at the St. Jakobshalle arena in Basel on May 18, 2025. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP) (Photo by FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images)For all its silliness and ephemerality, the Eurovision Song Contest remains one of the few truly pan-European mass-cultural events. So it is not an inconsequential matter when countries are either barred from the contest or withdraw from it for political reasons. While viewers may think of it as a competition between nations, the contest is actually between the respective national broadcasters. The history of Eurovision is littered with national rivalries or tensions affecting the show and, at times, the outcome.

Source: The Irish Times December 05, 2025 21:30 UTC