VIENNA — The Eurovision Song Contest grand final was held at the Wiener Stadthalle arena in Vienna, with acts from 25 countries competing in an edition marking the contest's 70th anniversary. The event proceeded after broadcasters in Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland and Slovenia boycotted this year's contest in protest over Israel's participation.

The show opened with a performance by JJ, last year's winner, and an Olympics-style flag parade of the 25 finalists. The contest winner is determined by combining public televote and jury votes into points; the act with the most points wins, and that country hosts the next competition.

This year's field of 35 contestants is the smallest since 2003. Noam Bettan represented Israel with the song "Michelle." Søren Torpegaard Lund represented Denmark with "Før Vi Går Hjem," Sarah Engels represented Germany with "Fire," Essyla represented Belgium with "Dancing on the Ice," Lelēka represented Ukraine with "Ridnym," Lavina represented Serbia with "Kraj Mene," Satoshi represented Moldova with "Viva, Moldova" and Akylas represented Greece with "Ferto" ("Bring It"). Delta Goodrem represented Australia with "Eclipse," performing while being raised into the air above a glittery piano. If Australia wins, a European country will host the contest on its behalf next year. Betting odds favored Finland's entry "Liekinheitin," which features Pete Parkkonen and Linda Lampenius.

Hundreds of protesters marched near the arena before the grand final, holding placards saying "Block Eurovision." Pro-Palestinian groups staged an outdoor concert on Friday under the banner "No stage for genocide." Four people were ejected from a semifinal for attempting to disrupt Bettan's performance.

"Inviting Israel on such a beautiful stage as the Eurovision Song Contest stage is an affront to all the people who believe in humanity, who believe in love and togetherness," said Patrick Bongola, a Congolese-Austrian artist.

Calls for Israel to be excluded have continued for a third consecutive year. The European Broadcasting Union, which organizes the contest, describes it as a celebration of music and unity and states that it remains above politics. After the EBU confirmed Israel's participation in December, broadcasters in the Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain, Iceland and Ireland announced their boycotts. The EBU banned Russia after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. In 2025, official state channels linked to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Foreign Ministry launched paid digital ad campaigns across Europe instructing viewers to vote for Israel 20 times. The EBU found no evidence of systemic fraud and reduced the maximum number of votes per person to 10. Israel's entry received the highest public televote and a lower jury vote, finishing second overall in last year's contest.

"Eurovision has never really been a contest for big stars. It's largely been a contest for underdogs," said Dean Vuletic, a Eurovision historian.

Organizers reported that 166 million people watched last year's contest worldwide. The contest is broadcast on national broadcasters in participating countries, on Peacock in the United States, and on the Eurovision YouTube channel in many territories. Viewers in participating countries can vote up to 10 times via phone or text message during the broadcast window, but cannot vote for their own country's act. Viewers in nonparticipating countries can vote online at www.esc.vote. A spinoff contest, Eurovision Song Contest Asia, is scheduled to take place in Bangkok in November.