From every corner of the globe: Meet the volunteers who make EURO 2024

There are 16,000 volunteers from 124 different countries at EURO 2024, but it's possible that Sam, from Australia, travelled further than all of them. "It's a long way to go, but the idea of all these different cultures coming together really appealed," he said. "It's just amazing, the magnitude and scale of this tournament' it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

Recruitment for EURO 2024 volunteers opened exactly one year before the first match on 14 June, with UEFA's volunteer team sifting through a record 146,000 applications and conducting 25,000 interviews.

Anyone attending a EURO 2024 game will have seen a host of smiling faces, all dressed in matching green uniforms. Each host city has 1,600 volunteers stationed at the stadiums and throughout the city, with many different responsibilities including ticketing, accreditation and catering.

At the service of fans

UEFA via Getty Images

Many volunteers are working behind the scenes, but one of the most visible departments is spectator services, those volunteers who interact with fans at every game. Ella, a EURO volunteer from England, explains: "Every matchday I'm either stationed inside the stadium or outside it on the route which the fans take. You're there to answer any questions, help people, direct them to their seats but also to bring the atmosphere – we have foam fingers and loudspeakers, helping to direct the crowd."

Michael, a sustainability volunteer in Hamburg, is responsible for raising awareness of initiatives within the stadium. "When we had Albanian fans here, I learned the phrase 'Have fun' in Albanian and I said it to everyone. Everyone was smiling!"

For the first time, the volunteer programme is run in conjunction with each host city. Michael in Hamburg found out about it through a local event, explaining. "I felt almost obliged to volunteer for this EURO, because I live in Hamburg and I love it here."