The organiser of the Eurovision Song Contest has said it is looking into changes to the rules for 2027, reportedly to discourage voting campaigns that may influence the results.
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) is said to have issued a letter to participating broadcasters, suggesting the vote is moved entirely online, with the public asked to select their top three acts.
The suggested changes aim to dissuade the public from voting multiple times for one contestant, according to BBC News.
The current voting system allows viewers to vote up to 10 times per payment method for their favourite act by phone, text message, or online.
A statement from Eurovision said: “We can confirm that we have begun investigating a move to wholly online audience voting for the Eurovision Song Contest and more details will be announced in the months ahead.”
In 2025, several broadcasters raised concerns about social media posts on Israeli government accounts encouraging people to vote multiple times, and whether they may have influenced the results of the competition.
The country was represented by Yuval Raphael with New Day Will Rise.
Israel won the 2025 public vote, placing second in the competition overall.
The incident sparked concerns about the Eurovision rules, and the EBU responded in 2026 by reducing the maximum number of votes per payment method from 20 to 10.
Israel’s Noam Bettan, singing Michelle, was the runner-up in this year’s Eurovision, with Israel placing third in the public vote.
Israel placed second in the public vote in 2024 and came fifth overall.
The EBU announced new rules for the 2027 competition earlier this week.
The UK hosted the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest on behalf of Ukraine, which was unable to host due to the Russian invasion.
Leading up to the 2026 Vienna competition, Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands, Iceland, and Slovenia threatened to withdraw unless Israel was excluded over the war in Gaza.
The nations did not compete in the 2026 contest.
The EBU said the recent rule changes were made following feedback from participating broadcasters, adding the new rules would provide greater clarity for artists and production staff.
The organisation also announced several other changes earlier this week.
It stated that from 2027, all artists must also be at least 18 years old, rather than 16, on the day of their first rehearsal.
A requirement for the lead singer or singers to perform the main melody live was also among the new rules.
The 2027 Eurovision Song Contest will be held in Burgas, Bulgaria, after singer DARA won this year’s event in Vienna in May with the song Bangaranga.
Source: Press Association