Hundreds of complaints flooded Spain’s national broadcaster after Eurovision 2025, focusing mainly on Israel, while viewers also voiced concerns about the local national final, the Spanish entrant, and broadcast quality.

The Eurovision Song Contest 2025, held in Basel, not only generated excitement over the music but also triggered a significant public stir in Spain. According to a report from Spanish national broadcaster RTVE, hundreds of complaints followed the event, with the majority calling for Israel to be banned from participation and for its act to be skipped during the broadcast – referencing tensions related to Gaza and ongoing international criticism. This trend has intensified since 2024, but this year, public reaction reached an unprecedented scale.

Most complaints included explicit calls against Israel, including objections to the Israeli-owned Moroccanoil brand serving as the contest’s lead sponsor. Many also voiced renewed anger at RTVE’s visible support for Palestinian rights.

Israel at the Center of the Eurovision Storm

In 2025, RTVE received no less than 328 complaints about Israel’s participation in Eurovision, with most urging the national broadcaster to push for Israel’s expulsion or to block its performance from airing. Despite these requests, official Eurovision rules do not allow for a country’s boycott or the censoring of a live performance.

Alongside anti-Israeli protests, viewers objected to the Israeli ownership of Moroccanoil, the event’s main sponsor, and targeted their complaints primarily at advertisements aired during the broadcast. Moroccanoil is a privately held company founded in 2008, with key ownership and leadership by Israeli entrepreneurs.

Political Statements on Public TV: Complaints and Reactions

Public tensions escalated when the contest commentators, Tony Aguilar and Julia Varela, mentioned, just before Yuval Refael took the stage, the UN’s latest death figures in Gaza, calling for, “peace, justice, and respect for human rights,” during the broadcast.

“This is not a request against any particular country; it is a call for peace, justice, dignity, and human rights,” they stated.

This announcement alone prompted 127 complaints for allegedly using Eurovision to promote political messages, while 430 responses supported RTVE’s position.

Prior to the grand final, a slide was shown reading: “When it comes to human rights, silence is not an option. Peace and justice for Palestine.” 74 complaints objected to this anti-Israel political message, while 44 viewers expressed gratitude to the broadcaster. Following threats of sanctions by the European Broadcasting Union over these statements, another backlash surfaced—94 correspondences called for Spain’s withdrawal from Eurovision in protest.

Voting and Transparency: Public Debate and Confusion

After the voting results were revealed, Spain’s public was surprised to see Israel receive the highest number of votes from the Spanish televote, leading to difficult questions: How could there be mass protests, yet Israel still win the popular vote? RTVE also received complaints regarding the voting process, especially about the mandatory block on voting for a country’s own entry – a rule implemented by the Eurovision Song Contest and enforced equally across all participating countries.

National Final Format Under Scrutiny

The Benidorm Fest, Spain’s national final for Eurovision, was not spared criticism. RTVE’s quarterly public complaints report noted skepticism about how songs are selected, with some questioning if the aim is to choose the ‘best song’ or just any entry representing Spain. Suggestions to reform the event included decoupling the festival win from mandatory Eurovision participation, and, in several cases, proposals for Spain to withdraw from Eurovision altogether and create its own national music festival.

Melody Under the Spotlight: Mixed Fan Reactions

The performance of Melody, Spain’s Eurovision 2025 entry, triggered diverse reactions. According to RTVE’s report, some correspondences expressed disappointment in Melody’s final ranking and felt her artistic efforts and stage presence were not fairly recognized. Additional criticism arose regarding coverage of her performance on entertainment programs like “La Revuelta,” “Futuro Imperfecto,” and “La Familia De La Tele,” with viewers accusing these shows of disrespect.

Conversely, some viewers found Melody’s post-performance statements and conduct to be arrogant and lacking in self-reflection, highlighting deep divisions in Spanish public opinion concerning her response to both outcome and media criticism.

Broadcast and Technology: Technical and Production Complaints

Broadcast quality was another source of frustration for the attentive RTVE audience. The network’s quarterly ombudsman report documented complaints about frequent on-screen promotional graphics and channel promos interrupting live acts and detracting from viewing enjoyment.

TVE UHD channel viewers also reported audio-sync issues during commentator-free broadcasts. Additional submissions focused on the lack of Spanish-language subtitles for the songs and requests to allow Catalan-language broadcasting for native speakers.

Other minor issues also gained attention, such as concerns regarding repeated references to betting during the show, with one viewer describing this as sending an irresponsible message.

Where Music Meets Politics

Eurovision 2025 demonstrated once more how, for many, the cultural stage is intrinsically linked to political discourse—especially regarding Israel. The massive wave of complaints to RTVE, including measured calls to bar or censor Israel, signaled a worrying trend of sharp politicization among segments of the Spanish public. While some criticism may stem from genuine empathy, it often appears to reflect one-sidedness or even a disregard for Israel’s complexity and regional context.

Simultaneously, an equally notable phenomenon emerged: the louder the boycott calls against Israel, the stronger the counter-reaction grew. Hundreds of Spanish viewers not only rejected anti-Israel measures but praised the Israeli performance, called for peace and mutual respect, and showed support for the Israeli artist. Furthermore, Israel topped Spain’s public voting for the second straight year—sending a clear message: Attempts at boycotts can generate a powerful show of solidarity, prompting many viewers to actively support Israel as a counterbalance and ethical statement.

Many fail to recognize that by politicizing Israel’s participation and demanding its boycott, an opposing force emerges. It may be time to focus on the music itself, rather than internal politics of competing countries.

Spain in Eurovision 2025

“Esa Diva” (in English: “That Diva”) is the title of the song performed by singer Melody, who represented Spain at Eurovision 2025 in Basel, Switzerland.

Spain finished 24th with 37 points – 27 points from the juries (21st place) and only 10 (22nd place) from the televotes. In the last 20 years, Spain managed to finish only 3 times in the top 10.

Eurovision 2025: This was Spain’s 65th participation in Eurovision. Spain joined the competition in 1961 and won it twice consecutively in 1968 and 1969. Spain has hosted the contest on its territory only once in 1969 and since then holds the longest waiting time since its last victory – 56 years.

Source: escplus.es