The Netherlands will return to the Eurovision Song Contest in 2027 after skipping the 2026 competition. Dutch broadcaster Avrotros had withdrawn over concerns about Israel’s participation and said the contest could no longer be viewed as neutral amid divisions linked to the Gaza war.

The country’s public broadcasting body, NPO, said broadcaster NOS will handle Eurovision coverage, while an independent panel of experts will select the Dutch entry. NPO said the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) had made significant changes to the contest’s rules and stressed the importance of Eurovision’s role as a unifying European event.

The EBU has introduced measures including a rule preventing countries involved in armed conflicts from hosting the contest and proposed changes to voting rules over concerns about politically motivated voting. Eurovision director Martin Green welcomed the Netherlands back, while Avrotros said it remained unconvinced that the changes had fully restored the contest’s neutrality. The 2027 Eurovision final is scheduled for 14 May in Burgas, Bulgaria.

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