A new Gallup survey shows that a majority of Icelanders want their country to take part in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026… but only if Israel is not allowed to compete.
Most Icelanders would join only under certain conditions
According to the poll, published by Vísir, 58% of respondents said they generally support Iceland’s participation but would oppose it if Israel takes part.
Meanwhile, 21% said they support Iceland joining the Contest regardless of Israel’s involvement, 6% said they support participation even if Israel is excluded, and 15% said they oppose Iceland taking part either way.
The findings come as Iceland’s broadcaster RÚV prepares to decide its official stance on Israel’s participation later this month. RÚV will hold its next board meeting at the end of October, ahead of the EBU’s November meeting, where members will vote on whether Israel should remain in the competition.
What the poll tells us
Gallup carried out the online survey between 18 September and 2 October 2025, with a total of 1,748 respondents and a 46.8% participation rate.
Results show that support varies across different groups:
- Women are more likely than men to oppose participation if Israel competes.
- University-educated respondents are more likely to back participation only if Israel is excluded.
- Lower-income households tend to be more opposed to Iceland’s participation overall.
- People living in rural areas are generally less supportive of participation than those in the capital region.
Political affiliation also plays a role: voters for the Independence Party (Sjálfstæðisflokkurinn) and the Centre Party (Miðflokkurinn) are most likely to support participation regardless of Israel’s status, while supporters of the Social Democratic Alliance (Samfylkingin) and Reform Party (Viðreisn) are more inclined to back participation only if Israel is excluded.
RÚV yet to make a final call
RÚV’s leadership has previously hinted that the broadcaster is unlikely to participate if Israel remains in the line-up, though no final decision has yet been made. The board is expected to finalise its position in late October, after meeting with other Nordic broadcasters in the coming days.
The question of Israel’s participation continues to divide both the Icelandic public and national broadcasters across Europe, with Iceland now one of the most closely watched cases ahead of the EBU’s November vote.
Iceland’s Eurovision journey
Iceland made its debut on the Eurovision stage in 1986, finishing 16th with the song “Gleðibankinn” (Bank of Fun) by ICY. In their 35 appearances, Iceland has finished in top 10 an impressive 7 times. Their best result to date is second place, which they have achieved twice. The first time was in 1999, where Selma Björnsdóttir received 146 points for her performance of “All Out of Luck”. The second time was in 2009, with Yohanna singing “Is It True” and receiving 218 points.
VÆB represented Iceland in Basel in 2025 with their song “RÓA”. The duo qualified for the final, bringing Iceland back into the final for the first time since 2022. In the final, they would eventually finish in 25th place with 33 points; all of these were awarded by the televote.
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News Source: Vísir
Photo Credit: Alma Bengtsson / EBU
Rory Gannon 
Thomas James