It has been almost two weeks since the 69th Eurovision Song Contest wrapped up. Fans saw a close finish between Austria’s JJ and Israel’s Yuval Raphael, but Austria won the contest with a whopping 436 points.

Last year’s song contest was the most controversial year that the Eurovision has ever seen and many fans were skeptical if the contest would be able to bring the drama back, but did it?

If you have to ask that question, you clearly weren’t watching. Here’s a run down of all the controversies that plagued the contest.

Participating countries call for Israel ban

Even before the contest kicked off, many of the participating countries calling for Israel’s ban. This has been an ongoing issue since Israel’s initial participation in 1973, and Arab countries continuing to not recognise the state of Israel. In recent years, countries have been calling for the ban because of the ongoing war in Gaza. Many countries have raised points about the contest banning Russia due to the war in Ukraine, with multiple delegations claiming Israel’s inclusion is a double standard.

An open letter addressed to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), calling for Israel to be banned from the song contest was signed by 72 artists and co-performers .

Following Eurovision 2024, the EBU sought to prevent the same protests from happening again. To achieve this, the EBU required all artists, delegations and journalists to sign a code of conduct, ensuring respectful interaction. One of the central points of the code of conduct was the prohibition of making political statements.

Despite the constant pressure from participating countries’ delegations to ban the country from the contest, the EBU claims to be an apolitical event and a “competition between public service broadcasters” and not “a contest between governments”.

JJ went on an interview with ABC Diario and was asked about Israel’s participation after his win.

“It is very disappointing to see that Israel is still participating in the contest,” he said

“I would like next year’s Eurovision to be held in Vienna and without Israel. But the ball is in the EBU’s court. We, the artists, can only raise our voices on the matter.”

Finland entrant criticised for over-sexualised performance

Finnish entrant Erika Vikman’s song ‘Ich Komme’ was met with heavy restrictions around her costume from her national selection final. The EBU requested changes to her performance for the competition including changes to her choreography and costume due to concerns about its perceived “sexual” nature.

Vikman stated she would accept the changes, but as she put it, “what the EBU is doing is hypocrisy” but “the EBU wants to cover my a–. So, I’ll have to cover it”.

Entrants criticised for Pro-Russia stance

Another entrant, Georgia’s Mariam Shengelia, has faced backlash for reported support for the Georgian Dream, a pro-Russian political party in Georgia. Armenia’s PARG has faced similar controversy several news agencies reported on his cultural ties with Russia and reported participation in Russian shows and collaboration with Russian artists.

Croatian entrant criticises entrants online

Croatia’s entrant Marko Bošnjak, who failed to qualify to the final, took to social media to address the fact he reportedly criticised other entrants and accused them of multiple scandals while at a club. After a negative response from the general public, Bošnjak stated that he stood by his remarks, claiming that what he said was true and he could “add more on top of it”.

“The Code of Conduct that we signed to be nice to each other has stopped with my disqualification from the contest,” he said.

Voting controversies impact televoting

On the night of the contest millions of fans voted, and juries deliberated who their 12 points would go to.

Before voting started, some juries had to be disqualified. This was the case for Ukraine’s jury as the 2021 entry for Ukraine, Kateryna Pavlenko from the band Go_A, was disqualified from the jury as per request from the EBU due to her allegedly breaking the contest’s strict voting rules. The specific nature of the violation has not been released.

As for the televoting, countries such as Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Iceland and Finland have raised concerns about the public vote, with some requesting an audit.

Many fans also had similar concerns regarding Israel’s convincing win in the televote with a total 297 points from the public, with the public vote mostly being swayed by which song is most popular on streaming platforms and in the community. Raphael’s song was one of the many that was barely talked about amongst the wider community.

Many have seen this as potential manipulation from the Israel delegation, potentially influencing the votes in their favour, which is strictly prohibited by the EBU. Although they claim not to have done so, there are multiple instances of the Israeli government using the government to promote their entrant as seen on the government’s official social media.

Now that Eurovision is over, fans are eagerly waiting to see which Austrian city will host in 2026 and anticipate the EBU’s response to all the controversies of this year.

Photo: JJ on Eurovision 2025 Blue carpet in Basel by BonDuke found HERE and used under a Creative Commons license. This image has not been modified.