Eurovision winner Nemo vows to return trophy over Israel’s 2026 inclusion
Iceland confirmed earlier this week that it will not take part in the 2026 contest, becoming the fifth nation to withdraw
By Callum Wells
Eurovision 2024 winner Nemo has confirmed they will return their trophy, saying they can no longer keep it while Israel remains part of the 2026 competition.
The Swiss singer who won the contest with the song ‘The Code’ and became the first non-binary artist to take the title, announced the move in a statement on Instagram.
“Even though I’m immensely grateful for the community around this contest and everything this experience has taught me both as a person and artist, today I no longer feel this trophy belongs on my shelf,” they wrote.
“We support the collective decision made by members of the EBU” – the BBC publicly backing the EBU’s stance
Nemo’s decision follows a growing backlash among participating countries. Iceland confirmed earlier this week that it will not take part in the 2026 contest, becoming the fifth nation to withdraw after Spain, Ireland, Slovenia and the Netherlands. Each of the boycotting broadcasters has cited Israel’s military operations in Gaza as the reason for stepping back.
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) had faced calls to reconsider Israel’s eligibility, but instead introduced new guidance intended to limit political influence from governments. After the boycott announcements began, the BBC publicly backed the EBU’s stance, saying: “We support the collective decision made by members of the EBU. This is about enforcing the rules of the EBU and being inclusive.”
Ireland’s national broadcaster RTE has said it will not air the 2026 final at all, calling Israel’s involvement “unconscionable given the appalling loss of lives in Gaza”.
“Israel deserves to be represented on every stage around the world, a cause to which I am fully and actively committed” – Israel president Isaac Herzog
Next year’s staging will take place in Vienna, after Austria’s act JJ secured victory at the 2025 contest with “Wasted Love”, narrowly beating Israel’s Yuval Raphael.
Responding to the EBU’s decision to keep Israel in the competition, the country’s president, Isaac Herzog, wrote: “Israel deserves to be represented on every stage around the world, a cause to which I am fully and actively committed.”
The EBU has previously barred nations from competing, most notably Russia, which has not been permitted to return to Eurovision since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
During their November/December 2024 cover interview with Attitude, Nemo praised Chappell Roan for being vocal about her struggles with fame and calling out injustices.
“It’s very brave and good of her to speak up about these things,” the recipient of our Person of the Year, supported by Virgin Atlantic, at the Virgin Atlantic Attitude Awards, powered by Jaguar. “It’s not anywhere close [for me] to how it is for her — she just exploded onto the map! — but this comes with sides that people don’t know about and can’t even imagine. There’s a lot of pressure, and a lot of people suddenly entering your space that would not have before.”
Subscribe to Attitude magazine in print, download the Attitude app, and follow Attitude on Apple News+. Plus, find Attitude on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, X and YouTube.
