Netherlands Wins Eurovision Final 2019 as Favorites

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - The Netherlands won the 64th Eurovision Song Contest in Israel on Sunday in a songfest that passed off without serious incident, despite calls by pro-Palestinian groups to boycott the event.

Duncan Laurence singing ‘Arcade’ beat off 25 other contestants in the grand final in Tel Aviv to win the glass microphone trophy.

The 41-country singing competition featured a guest appearance by Madonna, who caused some controversy when two backing dancers briefly appeared on stage wearing costumes emblazoned with the Israeli and Palestinians flags. Iceland’s contestants also displayed small Palestinian banners during the voting.

With its victory, the Netherlands wins the right to host next year’s competition.