After finishing last in the grand final, the CEO of the San Marino national broadcaster and the country’s Minister of Tourism have harshly criticized the European Broadcasting Union and the Eurovision voting system—targeting not just the televote, but also the jury voting, unlike other countries.

A wave of frustration has swept through San Marino’s national broadcaster following the disappointing result—last place in the final with the song “Tutta L’Italia” by Gabry Ponte. In an interview aired on national television, Roberto Sergio, CEO of San Marino’s national broadcaster, and Federico Pedini Amati, San Marino’s Minister of Tourism, voiced strong reservations about the current Eurovision voting system. Unlike other countries that criticized only the public vote—especially after Israel received high scores—San Marino’s criticism extended to the jury voting as well.

Roberto Sergio stated emphatically: “The system doesn’t work—the public vote is not necessarily related to the song itself. On the one hand, there are zeros, and on the other, there are high numbers that aren’t given based on performance quality, but for all sorts of strange reasons.” He added that the problem is even more severe when it comes to the juries: “What’s worse is the lack of seriousness among the jury members. We don’t know who selected them, what their names are, or what musical qualifications they have. They give votes that are simply disgraceful.”

Federico Pedini Amati also expressed frustration with how San Marino is treated, claiming the country is penalized simply because of its size: “What we want to say to the EBU is that we are not willing to continue being punished just because we are a small country. It’s simply unfair. We prepare, we bring top artists—and we are a country like any other, just like the big ones.”

San Marino Broadcaster Issues Official Statement

Additionally, the national broadcaster released a statement: “We believe that international relations and the military conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza are ‘challenging’ the contest, which is supposed to be musical.” This neutral statement casts doubt on whether Israel’s results are free from political influence, but unlike other countries, does not accuse Israel of vote manipulation. Instead, it also highlights Ukraine’s puzzling success and subtly criticizes the juries for boycotting Israel.

San Marino’s criticism joins calls from across Europe for reform in the voting system. However, unlike other countries, San Marino’s criticism is not focused solely on the Israeli case, but rather addresses the overall nature of the voting process.