Eurovision banned the EU flag from the song contest. The EU demands to know why

BRUSSELS – The European Union’s executive said on Monday it will demand explanations from the organizers of the Eurovision song contest why its flag was banned from the concert hall during the final.

In a contest already fraught with controversy, the European Commission said it plans “a very lively discussion” with organizers about the ban. Although the EU, made up of 27 countries, did not compete as such, many of its Member States did, and the star-spangled blue flag is often seen as a unifier for all involved.

European Commission spokesman Eric Mamer said he had “no information from the organizers at this time regarding the motivation for refusing to fly the European flag during the event”, but the ban clearly angered EU Vice-President Margaritis Schinas, enough to hold talks with the Swiss-based European Broadcast Union, which organizes the contest.

“We certainly encourage the EBU to understand that this is a mistake,” Mamer said.

During the week-long contest, organizers were already troubled by protests linked to the war in Gaza and the controversial disqualification of the Dutch entrant due to an incident that was never fully explained.

Before the final, a spokesperson for the European Broadcasting Union which runs the program said that ticket holders could only bring and display flags representing the participating countries, as well as the rainbow-colored flag, which is a symbol of LGBTQ+ communities.

Swiss singer Nemo won the 68th Eurovision Song Contest on Sunday morning with “The Code,” an operatic pop-rap ode to the singer’s journey toward embracing a non-gender identity.