Eurovision blues and a red card for Israel?

In South Africa, we could not have achieved our freedom and just peace without the help of people around the world, who through the use of non-violent means, such as boycotts and divestment, encouraged their governments and other corporate actors to reverse decades-long support for the Apartheid regime.

–Archbishop Desmond Tutu

I am a huge fan of the sport of cricket, having played competitively in high school. Throughout the height of apartheid in South Africa, I was an avid supporter of both our provincial and national cricket teams.

Earlier, the anti-apartheid movement succeeded in getting South Africa banned from international cricket in 1970. We had impressive cricket talent back then, which has endured to the present day. For a period of time, I found it personally disappointing that they weren’t allowed to compete and felt selfishly cheated for not being able to follow their exploits internationally.

For someone with a great love for sport, political interference angered me. However, as my political consciousness and social awareness grew, I began to understand why it was necessary. My personal feelings had to take a back seat so that a great injustice could be addressed. Historically, economic sanctions and sports boycotts have proven to be an effective method for reining in oppressive regimes. However, one must acknowledge that these mechanisms could also be exploited, as in the case of the U.S., which uses sanctions to bully other countries into complying with its imperialist foreign policy.

However, both these methods of applying international pressure on the South African government contributed ultimately to bringing an end to apartheid in 1994. Promising careers of sporting figures were either destroyed or damaged, while the economic boycotts forced ordinary people to endure great hardship. These were necessary sacrifices that many made willingly. In the end, they were worth it.

Israel has been allowed to compete for many years in European competitions, despite not being geographically located in Europe. It didn’t seem to matter much to most people until recently. Israel’s devastatingly oppressive apartheid policies, which are being systematically enforced against the Palestinian population, had remained hidden mainly through years of successful propaganda by Israel. Widespread awareness was successfully thwarted through propaganda and Western media complicity, as the brutal nature of the Zionist ethno-state remained concealed for nearly eight decades. Recently, however, as recognition of the genocide in Gaza grows exponentially, calls for them to be excluded or banned from international competition have grown increasingly louder.

Israel’s participation in European competitions is now being strongly questioned. There is now widespread cognisance that Israeli settlers are primarily of European descent. It’s fair to proclaim that Israel is a European colony pretending to be Semitic. It’s also fair to conclude that the intensified weaponisation of antisemitism is proving to be valuable and effective in the defence of the indefensible.

Notwithstanding, Israel’s continued participation in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2026 has now come under increased scrutiny. Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, the Netherlands and Iceland are threatening to boycott the event if Israel’s participation continues. Just this week, Poland’s Minister of Culture, Marta Cienkowska, joined the call for Israel’s expulsion.

Meanwhile, on another front, Spain, which is a major contender in the FIFA Soccer World Cup, has threatened to boycott the 2026 World Soccer Cup if Israel qualifies and is allowed to compete. Spain’s Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, defended protest action against Israeli cyclists this week, which forced the final stage of the Vuelta a España bicycle race to be abandoned. Elsewhere, Irish sporting organisations are also calling for the boycott of Israel, while prominent Italian football players like Eric Cantona have also made similar calls.

Russia were banned from international competition when it invaded Ukraine. Nobody seems to have a problem with this, least of all Israel. It’s therefore hypocritical for Israel to be allowed to compete internationally and in Europe. The double standards being employed by the West are stark and ominous.

The world seems helpless to stop Israel from completely annihilating the entire population of Gaza. Complicity in the genocide by the U.S. and England, mainly, is proving impossible to restrain. While protest action is brave, ethical, and morally justified, it has been largely ineffectual as these complicit governments enact violent reprisals and laws to combat them.

With the unreserved support of the U.S. and England, Israel will continue perpetrating war crimes while showing the world the middle finger. Boycotts are the most effective weapon we still have at our disposal, and it’s a power that neither the U.S. nor England can bomb into oblivion.