The winner of Eurovision 2024 returned the award due to Israel's participation in the contest.

Swiss singer Nemo Mettler, winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 2024, has announced that he has returned his award to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) because of Israel. He announced this on December 11.

Eurovision says it supports unity, inclusivity and dignity for all. These values made the contest significant to me," the artist wrote in his Instagram post (owned by Meta, a company whose activities are recognized as extremist and banned in the Russian Federation).

According to Mettler, he no longer considers the award his own, since the EBU's decision to allow Israel to participate contradicts the stated principles of the competition. The musician noted that his position is not directed against individual performers, but concerns exclusively the actions of the organizers and their inconsistency with the proclaimed ideals.

"That's why I decided to send my trophy back to the EBU headquarters in Geneva," the singer emphasized.

Mettler added that he is waiting for the moment when the words and actions of the organizers will coincide, and then the award will make sense. In the meantime, according to him, the trophy should be returned.

Fake note: why several countries have abandoned Eurovision 2026

Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands and Slovenia announced a boycott of the international song contest.

Earlier, on September 12, it was reported that the Netherlands would refuse to participate in the Eurovision 2026 music contest if an Israeli representative participated in it. It was clarified that the Netherlands joined Ireland, stating that they refused to participate.

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