Moment Eurovision crowd boo Israeli contestant as scores announced at Grand Final
THIS is the moment the Israeli contestant was booed before finishing runner-up at the Eurovision Song Contest 2026.
Loud jeers could be heard echoing around the Wiener Stadthalle arena in Vienna as Israel received their points from the public.
Israel received a huge 220 points in the audience vote, which took the country to the top of the table before the final results were announced.
The live audience could be heard booing very loudly as Israel went to the top.
Host nation Austria were quick to move things along before Bulgaria was eventually crowned the winner of this year’s competition.
Israel’s participation has sparked controversy amid the ongoing war in Gaza.
Five countries, including Spain and Ireland, boycotted the event in protest at Israel being allowed to compete.
Critics accused organisers of double standards after Russia was banned following its invasion of Ukraine.
Israel’s contestant Noam Bettan was booed during the semi-finals, with pro-Palestinian protesters chanting “Free Palestine” and “Stop the genocide”.
Huge protests were staged in Vienna, forcing organisers to ramp up security around the arena for last night’s final.
More than 1,000 musicians and cultural figures signed open letters calling for Israel to be excluded from the competition.
Despite the backlash, Eurovision bosses defended Israel’s right to participate, insisting the contest should remain “neutral”.
Singer DARA took home the trophy with her high-energy pop anthem “Bangaranga”, securing Bulgaria’s first-ever Eurovision victory.
The country topped both the jury vote and overall scoreboard, finishing ahead of Israel in second place.
The 27-year-old finished on 516 points, edging out a tightly contested leaderboard filled with surprise results.
Israel had briefly led in the contest, but was overtaken once jury scores were fully combined.
The results sparked huge celebrations among the Bulgarian delegation as confetti rained down in the arena.
DARA’s win has been described as a breakthrough moment in the country’s Eurovision history.
The United Kingdom automatically qualified for last night’s final as part of the ‘Big Four’ who are the contest’s biggest funders.
However, contestant Look Mum No Computer walked away with only one point in total.