Updated 06.31 | Published 2026-06-05 20.15
Eurovision’s viewership figures reach 131 million this year.
That is 35 million fewer than last year, writes AFP.
Five countries boycotted this year Eurovision Song Contest as Israel is still allowed to compete despite the war in Gaza while Russia was outright disqualified when it attacked Ukraine.
The Netherlands, Iceland, Spain, Ireland and Slovenia withdrew and the latter three countries did not broadcast the music competition at all, which probably contributed to the loss of viewers.
The largest number of viewers per capita is found in the Nordic countries, writes the EBU, the European Broadcasting Union, but in Sweden it has already been reported that this year’s broadcast of the ESC final dropped significantly – from 2.6 million last year to 1.9 this year.
In the UK, the loss was 3.7 million viewers, in France 3.3 million and in Poland 3.8 million.
With Dara winning with “Bangaranga” this year, Eurovision will be organized in Bulgaria next year.
