Eurovision 2025 has been embroiled in a scandal following allegations of vote rigging that, according to some countries, gave Israel a surprise second place in the contest. The public broadcasters of Spain (RTVE) and Belgium (VRT) have called for an investigation into the televoting system after Israel received 357 points from the public vote, despite the fact that professional juries in both countries gave it zero points, The Telegraph reports.
Under the Eurovision voting system, countries are awarded points from the jury and the public, with a maximum of 12 points from each side. However, concerns raised by VRT and RTVE relate to the possibility of manipulation through televoting, where the public is allowed to vote up to 20 times for a fee, writes A2 CNN.
Katia Segers, a Flemish MEP, stressed that a system that allows up to 20 votes per person could encourage organised manipulation. She called for VRT to lead an investigation within the EBU into this issue and into Israel's participation in the contest itself, in the context of the ongoing conflict in Gaza and the war crimes investigations against Israel.
Israeli singer Yuval Raphael's performance was interrupted by pro-Palestinian protesters who tried to enter the stage during the final in Basel, Switzerland. RTVE, meanwhile, displayed a message of solidarity with Palestine during the final broadcast, writing: "When human rights are at stake, silence is not an option."
Eurovision director Martin Green denied any irregularities and stressed that the voting is monitored by independent teams. However, VRT warned that without full transparency about the rules and voting process, future participation in the contest is questionable.
Eurovision 2025 was won by Austria with the song "Wasted Love" performed by JJ, collecting 436 points in total, 258 from the jury and 178 from the televoting. While the Albanian song "Zjerm", performed by the group Shkodra Elektronike, ranked eighth. (A2 Televizion)
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