Bulgaria wins Eurovision; Israel takes second

VIENNA – Bulgaria won the Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna on Saturday with a catchy dance track with a nonsensical title: “Bangaranga.”

The victory was a shock, given that Bulgaria did not feature among the pre-show favorites. And it came down to a nail-biting finish. Bulgaria’s act, Dara, was revealed as the winner only at the last minute, beating out Noam Bettan of Israel, who came in second.

The victory rounded off a troubled edition of the high-camp singing contest, whose run-up was overshadowed by protests over Israel’s involvement. Five nations, including some Eurovision stalwarts, boycotted the event because of Israel’s military actions in the Gaza Strip.

Those countries, including Ireland, the Netherlands and Spain, also voiced concern that the Israeli government had previously spent heavily on YouTube ads seeking votes for Israeli participants and had mounted a social media campaign. The government’s actions did not break Eurovision’s rules but upended conventions in an event that bills itself as apolitical.

Despite that furor, once the competition began Saturday night at the 16,000-capacity Wiener Stadthalle arena, fans seemed focused on the music and the onstage antics. The four-hour spectacle of the grand final included the usual mix of pyrotechnics and outré outfits, plus, this time, one singer in silver body paint.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.