Eurovision season unofficially kicked off on September 1. Five weeks later, the line-up for Burgas 2027 already has a new gap.

Czech Television (Česká televize, or ČT) announced this week that Czechia will not take part in next year’s contest, Eurovoix reported. The reason is money, not politics.

What ČT said

“The Eurovision Song Contest is a large-scale project with significant programming, production and organisational demands,” the broadcaster said. “In view of the budget adjustments currently underway, Česká televize has decided not to take part in the 2027 contest.”

ČT also won’t broadcast the show, according to Expats.cz. That means Czech fans who want to watch in May will have to find another way in.

The background: ČT has to cut about CZK 350 million from its spending in 2027, Expats.cz reports, and the three-party governing coalition plans to replace licence fees with funding from the state budget. Other popular programmes are being cancelled or cut back too.

ČT stressed that the decision is for 2027 only, and that it looks at each contest separately. The European Broadcasting Union said it “completely understands that broadcasters are having to make difficult choices.” Eurovision director Martin Green added: “We very much hope that Česká televize will return to the Contest when circumstances allow,” PinkNews reported.

Bad timing for Czech fans

Czechia has competed 14 times since its first entry in 2007, and it has never won. Its best results are Mikolas Josef’s sixth place in 2018 and Vesna’s tenth place in 2023.

It was on a decent run, too. In Vienna this May, Daniel Žižka’s “Crossroads” finished 16th with 113 points, the country’s fourth-best result ever, per Eurovoix.

Who’s in and who’s out for Burgas

Bulgaria won its first Eurovision in Vienna with DARA’s “Bangaranga,” and the 71st contest will be its first time hosting. According to the official Eurovision site, it takes place at Arena Burgas on the Black Sea coast, with semi-finals on May 11 and 13 and the grand final on May 15, 2027.

  • Out: Ireland. RTÉ said on September 17 that taking part “cannot be justified given the appalling and ongoing loss of lives in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there,” HuffPost UK reported.
  • Out: the Netherlands. Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS has also said it won’t take part, citing concerns that the contest can no longer be considered neutral, according to the same report. Both countries also sat out Vienna.
  • Out: Czechia, for budget reasons.
  • In, for the first time: Canada. CBC/Radio-Canada became a full EBU member in June, and the EBU confirmed that Canada will compete in the semi-finals. It’s the first new country since Australia in 2015, and the first from the Americas.

National selections are already under way in countries including Denmark, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Luxembourg, Norway, San Marino and Sweden, and Italy’s Sanremo festival will give Eurovision its own night for the first time.

The queer part of the story

Eurovision is one of the biggest dates in the LGBTQ+ calendar, and the countries on stage matter to the fans who travel.

The Czech exit lands in a year when Czechia was moving the right way. On ILGA-Europe’s 2026 Rainbow Map, it climbed six places to 26th. Same-sex couples have been able to register “partnerships” since January 2025, though that still isn’t full marriage equality, ILGA-Europe notes.

The host country is a more complicated picture. In August 2024, Bulgaria’s parliament amended its school education law to ban so-called “propaganda” of “non-traditional sexual orientation” in schools. ILGA-Europe reports that “students and teachers reported that the law has deepened fear and anxiety in the classroom,” and it is urging Bulgaria to repeal the provisions and to recognise same-sex couples.

We looked at what that means for queer fans heading to Bulgaria right after DARA’s win. (Back then we expected Sofia to host; the EBU later picked Burgas.) The EBU’s host city deal and its flag rules for Burgas are the next things to watch.

For now, the 2027 line-up is still shifting. More confirmations, and maybe more exits, are likely before the EBU publishes the final list of countries.