Uncertainty surrounds Iceland’s Eurovision 2026 participation as the national broadcaster RUV, delays its song submission deadline, amid confusion caused by controversy over Israel’s participation.
Rúnar Freyr Gíslason, director of Iceland’s national Eurovision selection and project manager at the national broadcaster, stated that as of now, no submission deadline has been set for Söngvakeppnin 2026. According to him, the matter is expected to be clarified in the coming days. The scheduling uncertainty emerged following the cancellation of the EBU vote on Israel’s participation in Eurovision, a vote initially planned for November. This decision led to further confusion regarding Iceland’s preparation for “Songvakeppnin 2026”.
Growing Uncertainty Behind the Scenes of “Songvakeppnin 2026”
The Icelandic national broadcaster RUV opened the submission window for Eurovision entries at the end of August, initially setting the song submission deadline for September 23rd. In October, the process was paused – at least temporarily – postponing the final date for submissions pending a decision concerning Israel’s eligibility for the contest, which is set to take place in Vienna, Austria.
There is now a widespread sense of uncertainty behind the scenes of Iceland’s Eurovision selection. According to Visir, hosts for the show have yet to be chosen, and the number of song submissions received is significantly lower than usual. This is notable given that registration has been open for nearly 60 days – compared to only 23 last year.
The main cause of the situation is the ongoing public debate and reactions from Icelandic officials over a potential boycott of the Eurovision Song Contest, due to Israel’s participation.
Will Iceland Withdraw?
As previously reported, Iceland leads the movement advocating a boycott of the contest should Israel take part alongside Slovenia and Spain. The chairman of Iceland’s national broadcaster board published an opinion piece voicing a strong stance, calling for Israel to be excluded from this year’s competition. The current situation – following the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and the EBU’s vote cancellation – only adds to the overall uncertainty. It is likely that Iceland’s fate will be determined after the European Broadcasting Union’s general assembly meeting, scheduled for December 4th.
Iceland at Eurovision 2025
“Róa” (in English: “to row”) is the name of the song performed by the duo Væb, who represented Iceland at Eurovision 2025. The act finished 25th in the Grand Final with 33 points, all from the televoting. Iceland ranked 17th in the televote and 26th with the jury vote.
Iceland qualified for the final after two consecutive years in which it failed to aqualify from the semi-finals.
Eurovision 2025: This was Iceland’s 37th participation in Eurovision. Iceland joined the competition in 1986 and achieved its best result in Eurovision 1999 and Eurovision 2009 after finishing second twice.
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Ilay Gaist is a leading Israeli content creator and writer specializing in the Eurovision Song Contest. He is a well-known commentator with extensive expertise in the contest’s history, rules, and dynamics. His passion for Eurovision drives him to deliver rich, professional, and innovative content to his audience.
Ilay holds a bachelor’s degree in Arabic and has a multilingual background. He also engages in cultural research, with a particular focus on global culinary traditions and the evolution of local cuisines around the world.
