Netherlands: Broadcaster AVROTROS won't compete at Eurovision 2027

Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS will not participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2027 in Burgas, continuing its absence from the Contest after withdrawing from Eurovision 2026

AVROTROS says it still does not see sufficient grounds to return to Eurovision, arguing that the Contest can no longer be considered neutral while a participating country remains involved in a large-scale military conflict.

According to the broadcaster, geopolitical tensions in the Middle East continue to have a significant impact on Eurovision and have created deep divisions around the Contest.

AVROTROS says:

– The severe humanitarian suffering in Gaza and the ongoing restrictions on press freedom have contributed to increasing divisions surrounding the Eurovision Song Contest in recent years.

The broadcaster has repeatedly called on the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to establish clear and transparent rules for the participation of countries involved in military conflicts.

AVROTROS says the changes recently announced by the EBU do not give the broadcaster sufficient confidence that Eurovision’s independent and neutral character has been restored.

The broadcaster says it remains unclear how the EBU assesses whether a country involved in a military conflict should be allowed to participate.

A platform for division

AVROTROS Director-General Taco Zimmerman says the broadcaster would have liked to return to Eurovision in 2027, but that its values prevent it from doing so under the current circumstances:

– The Eurovision Song Contest was originally created to bring people and countries together. It is undeniable that international conflicts are increasingly affecting the Contest, undermining its neutral character. The Eurovision Song Contest has therefore become a platform for division.

Zimmerman says AVROTROS remains committed to its values of trustworthiness, independence and humanity:

– They guide us in everything we do, even when that means stepping away from an event that is very close to our hearts. That is painful as we would have very much liked to be part of the Contest again next year.

NPO

NPO (Nederlandse Publieke Omroep) is the governing body of the Dutch public broadcasting system. It coordinates the country’s public broadcasters and distributes programming across the national public television, radio and online services.

The Dutch public broadcasting system currently consists of 13 broadcasters:

Nine member-based broadcasters: AVROTROS, BNNVARA, EO, HUMAN, KRO-NCRV, MAX, PowNed, VPRO and WNL.
Two task broadcasters: NOS and NTR.
Two provisional broadcasters: Ongehoord Nederland (ON!) and Omroep Zwart.

AVROTROS has been responsible for the Netherlands’ participation in the Eurovision Song Contest since 2014. By returning responsibility for Eurovision to NPO, another broadcaster within the Dutch public broadcasting system could potentially take over the country’s participation.

Decision now with NPO

AVROTROS has informed the Dutch public broadcasting organisation NPO of its decision and has transferred responsibility for Dutch Eurovision participation back to NPO.

NPO says it respects AVROTROS’ decision and acknowledges that geopolitical tensions have had a divisive effect around Eurovision. The organisation will now consider how to proceed.

NPO

The Dutch public broadcasting system currently consists of 13 broadcasters:

Nine member-based broadcasters: AVROTROS, BNNVARA, EO, HUMAN, KRO-NCRV, MAX, PowNed, VPRO and WNL.
Two task broadcasters: NOS and NTR.
Two provisional broadcasters: Ongehoord Nederland (ON!) and Omroep Zwart.

This means that AVROTROS’ withdrawal does not necessarily rule out Dutch participation in Eurovision 2027. Another broadcaster within the Dutch public broadcasting system could potentially take responsibility for the country’s participation.

AVROTROS also withdrew from Eurovision 2026 because of Israel’s participation. Iceland, Ireland, Slovenia and Spain also stayed out of the 2026 Contest.

AVROTROS is the first of those five broadcasters to confirm that it will also not participate in Eurovision 2027.

Statement from AVROTROS

AVROTROS will not participate in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2027 because the event can no longer be considered neutral, with a participating country still involved in a large-scale military conflict. Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East are having a significant impact on the Contest and have led to deep divisions. Over the past year, AVROTROS has called on the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to establish transparent rules for the participation of countries involved in military conflicts. However, the recently announced changes by the EBU do not provide sufficient confidence that the independent and neutral character of the Eurovision Song Contest has been restored. Participation is therefore no longer consistent with the values of AVROTROS: trustworthiness, independence and humanity.

The severe humanitarian suffering in Gaza and the ongoing restrictions on press freedom have contributed to increasing divisions surrounding the Eurovision Song Contest in recent years. This is reflected in, for example, the decision of five countries not to participate in 2026, former winners returning their trophies, and more than 1000 musicians and cultural professionals calling on the EBU, in an open letter, to intervene. This underlines the need for a clear framework for assessing the participation of countries involved in military conflicts. Under which circumstances is participation compatible with a neutral Eurovision Song Contest, and when is it not? For AVROTROS, it remains unclear on what basis the EBU makes that assessment.

Taco Zimmerman

Director-General of AVROTROS

The Eurovision Song Contest was originally created to bring people and countries together. It is undeniable that international conflicts are increasingly affecting the Contest, undermining its neutral character. The Eurovision Song Contest has therefore become a platform for division. As a public broadcaster, we remain committed to our values. They guide us in everything we do, even when that means stepping away from an event that is very close to our hearts. That is painful as we would have very much liked to be part of the Contest again next year.

Source: AVROTROS

The Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest

The Netherlands has historically been one of the 10 most successful Eurovision countries.

Netherlands 1957: Corry Brokken - "Net Als Toen"

They have participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 65 times since their debut in 1956, with five victories:

1957: Corry Brokken – Net Als Toen
1959: Teddy Scholten – Een Beetje
1969: Lenny Kuhr – De Troubadour
1975: Teach-In – Ding-A-Dong
2019: Duncan Laurence – Arcade

Netherlands 1957: Corry Brokken - "Net Als Toen"

The Netherlands came last in the contest 5 times: 1958, 1962, 1963, 1968 and 2011.

Since the introduction of the Semi-finals in 2004, they have qualified for the Grand Final 11 out of 21 times, but only competed in 10 finals, as they were disqualified from Eurovision 2024.