Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015

Israel's road to Vienna in 2015 began with an institutional arrangement forged amid financial difficulties at the Israel Broadcasting Authority. In October 2014, the authority's editor-in-chief Yona Wiesenthal reached an understanding with Keshet Broadcasting: the winner of the next season of the musical reality show "The Next Star" (Hebrew: Hakcohav Haba, or "Rising Star") would automatically represent Israel at Eurovision.[1] The agreement still awaited formal approval by both organizations and notification to the European Broadcasting Union at the time it was reported, but it drew on an established precedent — "A Star Is Born" winner Boaz Mauda had represented Israel in 2008, reached the final, and finished ninth.[1]

The arrangement also reflected a broader strategic rethink prompted by four years without a Eurovision final and the high costs of continued participation.[2] Ynet reported that Keshet would assume the delegation's expenses, including the recording of the selected song and its video, while Channel 1 would broadcast the final and both semifinals.[1]

The live selection final took place on February 17, 2015, and unfolded in two elimination rounds.[3] Avia Shoshani was the first contestant eliminated, followed by Sari Nachmias, leaving Nadav Guedj to face Iki Levi & Rasta Hebrew-Man for the top position.[4] During the competition, Guedj performed Beyoncé's "Crazy in Love" and John Legend's "All of Me"; his rivals performed songs including works by Ivri Lider and Zohar Argov, Coldplay's "Fix You," and John Lennon's "Imagine."[4]

Guedj won with a score of 79, ten points above the threshold set by the other top contender.[3] A native of Netanya and just 16 years old, he won the season and became Israel's Eurovision representative.[5] In his first post-victory interview, he joked that he might sing an Omer Adam song in Vienna.[5] When "Golden Boy" was later unveiled, he said he would give the performance everything he had but was not approaching the contest with an expectation of winning.[6]

Israel's entry, "Golden Boy," was written and composed by Doron Medalie and unveiled on March 12, 2015.[6] Performed entirely in English, the song was described by Guedj as a catchy mixture of styles; he also said he was proud to represent Israel with it.[6] Its unveiling followed Guedj's February selection and preceded the May contest in Vienna.

Israel competed in the second semifinal in Vienna on May 21, 2015.[7] Mako described Guedj's performance of "Golden Boy" as energetic, lively, and filled with pyrotechnics.[7] Ten countries advanced from the semifinal, and Israel claimed one of those places — its first Eurovision final since Harel Skaat represented the country in 2010, and the end of four consecutive failed attempts to qualify in 2011 through 2014.[7]

The announcement of qualifiers created its own drama. After nine of the ten available places had been named, one remained, and the Vienna audience began chanting "Israel, Israel" before the presenter confirmed the result.[2] Guedj later said that because Israel's name was held until last, he had feared qualification would not come, adding: "suddenly I came and just did it."[7] He was also 16 and had postponed a sitting of his matriculation exams to participate.[7]

The grand final took place on May 23, 2015, in Vienna, with 27 nations competing.[7] The Israeli delegation appeared early in the running order, with the Vienna audience responding enthusiastically to "Golden Boy"; supporters watching from Tel Aviv's Rabin Square encouraged the delegation from afar.[8]

Israel finished ninth with 97 points.[9] Its highest single-country score came from Italy, which awarded eight points; Azerbaijan gave seven and Serbia six.[9] Israel received no 12-point award from any country.[9] From Israel's side of the ballot, 12 points went to Italy, ten to Sweden, and eight to Russia.[9] Sweden won the contest with Måns Zelmerlöw's "Heroes," receiving 365 points; Russia placed second with 303, and Italy third with 292.[9]

The Israeli delegation was openly pleased with the result. They described ninth place as an "amazing achievement" and told reporters: "We are satisfied with ninth place. Nadav's performance was excellent. It's a great success for the state of Israel."[10]

Guedj returned to Israel with an immediate and grounding obligation: a Bible matriculation exam scheduled for the Thursday after his arrival home.[11] He later described the period following his win on "The Next Star" as being "in another world that is new, sometimes strange, sometimes tiring," requiring "hard work, perseverance, focus and many other things."[11] He was also scheduled to perform in June alongside Israeli singer Harel Skaat.[11]

Israel first entered Eurovision in 1973 and had won the contest three times by 2015: with "A-ba-ni-bi" in 1978, "Hallelujah" in 1979, and "Diva" in 1998.[2] The 2015 ninth-place result offered a meaningful contrast with the preceding years, during which Israel had been eliminated at the semifinal stage in each of 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014.[7] Guedj's final appearance was also an improvement on Israel's previous final result: Harel Skaat had placed 14th with 71 points in 2010.[9]

A 2020 Mako retrospective connected the 2015 turnaround to the selection partnership adopted after four years without a final and amid concerns about participation costs. It characterized Guedj's ninth-place finish as Israel's best Eurovision result in a decade.[2]

At a press conference in Vienna, a 24-year-old Lebanese fan named Ahmed asked Guedj whether, at 16, he had imagined he would help "build a bridge to peace" between Israel and Lebanon. Guedj replied that he thought about it all the time and that the question made his heart feel full.[12] The song's composer, Doron Medalie, then invited Ahmed onto the stage, where Guedj embraced him and Ahmed presented him with a Lebanese flag.[12] The participants and the report framed the exchange as a bridge-building moment between individuals across the political divide.

A separate controversy arose when five soldiers from a Paratroopers Brigade engineering battalion were sentenced to 21 days' confinement after posting a video of themselves dancing to "Golden Boy" in the West Bank — known by its original, indigenous Jewish name of Judea and Samaria — during operational activity.[13] The IDF stated that the punishment related to use of a mobile phone during life-threatening operational activity, which was prohibited, and not to the video's content.[13] Guedj responded warmly to the soldiers' enthusiasm, saying the video had made the Israeli delegation happy and offering to send them "Golden Boy" shirts to wear as civilians.[13]

Israel's ambassador to Hungary also raised an objection during the contest period when text displayed during Hungary's 2015 performance was seen to criticize Israel's military campaign in Gaza and accuse Israel of killing Palestinian children.[14] A senior Hungarian broadcasting authority official told the ambassador that Eurovision rules barring political content would be upheld and that the offending text would be removed.[14]