No Israelis: Noa Kirel Excluded from Eurovision Tour Lineup
Eurovision's international tour snubs Israeli stars Noa Kirel, Eden Golan, and Yuval Raphael despite top finishes. Plot twist: Norway's Alessandra, once Kirel's BFF turned post-October 7th critic, makes the cut.
The official Eurovision production has announced its international tour lineup featuring major stars from the competition's history, but Israeli representatives including Eden Golan, Yuval Raphael, and Noa Kirel have been left off the roster. Notably included is Norway's Alessandra, who was once Kirel's close friend but appears to have distanced herself since the war.
The political tension surrounding Israel's participation in Eurovision continues to simmer, this time manifesting in the tour announcement. Despite significant successes by Noa Kirel (3rd place), Eden Golan (5th place), and Yuval Raphael (2nd place), no Israeli representative was included in the selected lineup.
The most striking name on the tour roster is Alessandra, who represented Norway three years ago. During Eurovision 2023 in Liverpool, Kirel and Alessandra were inseparable, posting joint TikTok videos and displaying a close friendship documented by European media outlets.
However, since October 7th, that friendship shattered. Alessandra published pro-Palestinian statements following the war, took a critical stance toward Israel, and even withdrew from presenting Norway's scores this year at the last minute as a gesture of protest. Now, she has been chosen to headline the prestigious tour while Kirel remains excluded, along with recent representatives Eden Golan and Yuval Raphael, and it appears the production may have made this choice deliberately.
Who Will Perform?
Alongside Alessandra, the tour taking place this coming summer in June will include a lineup of familiar names from the competition's history:
- Helena Paparizou (2005 winner, Greece)
- Johnny Logan (Eurovision legend, Ireland)
- Verka Serduchka (Ukraine)
- Lordi (Finland)
- Katrina (England)
- Guy Sebastian (Australia)
The decision not to include an Israeli Eurovision star, and there are quite a few options (Izhar Cohen, Netta Barzilai), may have stemmed primarily from security considerations and concerns about safety issues. Still, this will probably disappoint Israeli fans.
From a professional standpoint, there's no doubt that Noa Kirel, Eden Golan, and Yuval Raphael all deserve to star in an international tour of this kind. Will the lineup change? The tour's promotional video stated that stars from Eurovision 2026 will also participate, so perhaps there's still a chance for Noam Batan to slip onto this roster.