Only a few days have passed since Noam Bettan was announced as Israel’s representative for Eurovision 2026, set to take place in May in Vienna. Although an official contest song has yet to be selected, and Israel climbed to the top of the betting odds even before the season finale of ‘The Next Star’, international reactions to Bettan’s abilities are already pouring in.
‘He makes me feel emotional even though I do not know what he is singing about,’ declared Eurovision blogger EuroCelso in a TikTok video that has amassed more than 30,000 views. Referring to Bettan’s song ‘Madame’, which he performed during the audition stage of the show, EuroCelso added, ‘There is so much pain in this song.’
The YouTube channel W & R, which has more than 150,000 subscribers, also praised Bettan, highlighting ‘his voice, which is strong and full of confidence.’ The hosts described the performance as ‘amazing’ and repeatedly exclaimed, ‘Wow.’
YouTuber Henrik Larsson, who also listened to ‘Madame’, commented on Bettan’s appearance as well. ‘It should be noted that he is also handsome,’ Larsson said. ‘His voice is beautiful. I do not know what he will sing, but a voice like that can sing anything. I do not want another ballad from Israel for the third year in a row, but it would be interesting to get something more upbeat or more Middle Eastern from Israel this year. Either way, he has a stunning voice.’
The YouTube channel Local Band Smokeout, which has more than 130,000 subscribers, said that after hearing Bettan for the first time, they hoped he would be Israel’s choice. ‘So beautiful. His voice is beautiful and you can feel all the emotions,’ the host said about the audition performance. ‘He was born to be a superstar. We are rooting for him in the competition and hope he goes far. Ten out of ten.’ Another YouTuber, ZuluModo, who has more than 12,000 followers, reacted to Bettan’s performance of ‘Dernière danse’, which he sang in the final. ‘He is an amazing singer. I cannot wait to see him at Eurovision,’ he said. ‘I love the tone and the texture of his voice. It is special and really beautiful. I love it. It is a great song and a cover that sounds wonderful.’
Bettan is not only receiving support abroad. Many Israelis commented on the Israeli public broadcaster’s official social media posts, expressing hope that next year’s Eurovision will be held in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv. At the same time, local celebrities used the platform to inject humor and show support for Israel from around the world. Social media personality Hapshuta commented in English, ‘Sending you love from Spain,’ while comedian Orel Tzabari wrote, ‘Lots of love from France,’ as a tongue-in-cheek reference to the supportive comments often posted by international bloggers. Earlier this week, Bettan defeated three other finalists on ‘The Next Star’: Gal De Paz, who finished second; Shira Zalouf, who placed third; and Alona Erez, who came in fourth.
The next stage will be the selection of Israel’s Eurovision song. Under the new rules set by the Kan public broadcaster, Keren Peles, who wrote Yuval Raphael’s song last year, will not be eligible to compete this year. Bettan himself will try his luck with an original song of his own and is scheduled to enter the studio as early as Sunday to record and submit a track to the selection committee. Despite efforts in recent years, and especially this year, to exclude Israel from the competition, Bettan will compete in the first semifinal, scheduled for May 12 in Vienna, Austria. The second semifinal will take place two days later, and the grand final will be held on May 16.