EU.org domains can be registered for free and do not expire. I've registered one more than 10 years ago, set up DNS using he.net and never had any issues.
See also https://www.getfreedomain.name for more free subdomains like that. I guess something like this is good enough for "a website", but you eventually end up getting what you paid for ...
.eu.org namespace isn't crowded either. I could register my first name with it, and gleefully kept it for a few years now. I have more trust with them to run it more than those novelty gTLDs that run all sorts of games to take as much money as possible.
I experienced my DNS service quitting and being unable to change my nameservers in EU.org; my email had changed, so automatic reset didn’t work, and guess how much tech support you get when you pay zero.
Not sure if it applies, but when the UK left the EU, our access to EU domains was, predictably, cut off. Apart from the politics of it, it was jarring because domain names can be so pivotal to so many aspects of business and life.
