After withdrawing from the competition last year, De Telegraaf reports Dutch national broadcaster AVROTROS will return to Eurovision 2027 with popular pop star Davina Michelle.
Is one of Eurovision’s key countries on its way to ending the boycott and making a particularly sparkling comeback? An exclusive report broadcast on the popular Dutch television program “De Oranjezomer” is making waves across Europe: Jordi Versteegden, senior media journalist for the widespread newspaper “De Telegraaf”, reported that the Netherlands will officially return to compete in Eurovision 2027 to be held in Burgas, Bulgaria.
As recalled, the Netherlands chose to boycott Eurovision 2026 in Vienna following Israel’s participation in the contest and the accompanying public criticism, joining a bloc of boycotting nations that also included Spain, Slovenia, Ireland, and Iceland. Although the Dutch national broadcaster AVROTROS has not yet issued an official public statement, Versteegden claims that the move is already finalized behind the scenes.
“Official Announcement in Two Weeks – Davina Michelle Is Going”
During the broadcast, the journalist revealed that rumors within the national broadcaster’s corridors have become an established fact:
“We’re just going. I hear through the grapevine that AVROTROS is going to announce in two weeks that we’re going again, We’re going, and I wish that for everyone who loves the Eurovision Song Contest.”
However, the biggest surprise did not stop merely at the Dutch comeback itself, but rather at the identity of the star who is expected to take the big stage in Sofia: according to Versteegden, the national broadcaster has already chosen its act for next year – pop singer Davina Michelle.
Breaking the Boycott: A U-Turn by the Dutch National Broadcaster
The emerging decision by AVROTROS to return to the contest represents a particularly sharp political and public turnaround. The Dutch national broadcaster, which was among the leaders of the strict boycott stance against Israeli participation in Eurovision 2026 and even chose to stay away from the broadcasts due to the presence of the Israeli delegation, is effectively breaking the policy it led over the past year. The realization that the contest continues as normal with Israel, alongside the desire to return the Netherlands to the center of the European cultural stage, has apparently led senior network officials to back down and abandon the boycotting measures ahead of the contest in Bulgaria.
Who Is Davina Michelle?
Davina Michelle (30) is considered one of the most successful, acclaimed, and beloved singers in the Netherlands in recent years. Her name was linked to Eurovision in the past when she delivered an unforgettable interval performance in the first semi-final of Eurovision 2021 in Rotterdam, where she captivated all of Europe with the song “The Power of Water“. Recently, Michelle herself was a guest on “De Oranjezomer”, where she was asked directly about the possibility of representing the country, and it now appears that contacts have matured into an official representation.
If the report receives official confirmation from AVROTROS in the next two weeks, it will mark one of the most impressive and promising comebacks seen in the contest in recent years – both on a political level by breaking the boycott on Israel, and on a musical level by sending one of the continent’s leading pop stars.
The Netherlands at Eurovision 2025
“C’est La Vie” is the title of the song performed by Claude, who represented the Netherlands at Eurovision 2025. The Netherlands qualified for the Grand Final after placing third in the first semi-final with 121 points. In the Grand Final, the Netherlands finished in 12th place with 175 points, with the jury awarding the country fifth place, but the public at home ranking it only 15th.
This year, the Netherlands participated in the Grand Final after two years of missing out. In 2023, Mia Nicolai and Dion Cooper failed to qualify from the semi-final, while in 2024, Joost Klein was disqualified after the semi-final due to a violent incident involving the competition’s production team.
Eurovision 2025: This was the Netherlands’ 65th participation in Eurovision. The Netherlands joined the competition in 1956, was one of the seven founding countries, and has won it five times over the years. The Netherlands’ last victory was at Eurovision 2019 with the song “Arcade” performed by singer Duncan Laurence.
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Neta Geffen is a respected journalist at Euromix, Israel’s leading news site for Eurovision coverage. Since 2010, Neta has been closely following the Eurovision Song Contest, bringing with him extensive experience, profound knowledge, and a broad understanding of the history, politics, and cultural influences that shape the event every year.
Neta publishes articles, analyses, and up-to-date reviews on all Eurovision developments, including musical trends, format changes, political influences, and audience reactions across Europe and Israel. Thanks to a deep connection to the contest’s history, Neta provides readers with wide-ranging context—from the impact of political events on results, to in-depth analyses of songs and languages within the competition. Neta specializes particularly in the Eurovision rock genre, Balkan ballads, and native language entries, with a special focus on Italian and Greek songs.
