Trophy handover ceremony in Munich

The trophies of the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Women's Champions League will be handed over to the city of Munich, venue for this season's finals, during a special ceremony taking place from 16.00CET today at the Altes Rathaus, Marienplatz.

UEFA President Michel Platini will hand over the UEFA Champions League trophy to the mayor of Munich, Christian Ude, and the UEFA Women's Champions League trophy to Christine Strobl, the mayor of Munich for sport. This prestigious event marks the countdown to the UEFA Women's Champions League and UEFA Champions League finals being played in the Bavarian city on 17 and 19 May respectively.

The ceremony will be conducted in the presence of UEFA Women's Champions League final ambassador Steffi Jones, UEFA Champions League final ambassador Paul Breitner and UEFA Champions Festival ambassador Willy Sagnol. Representatives of last season's men's and women's competition winners, FC Barcelona and Olympique Lyonnais, will also be in attendance.

Michel Platini said: "This annual cup handover event symbolises the start of the countdown to the season's finals. I would like to thank the DFB for all their help in delivering what I believe will be yet another fantastic celebration of European football, this time in Munich, a city with such a strong football heritage. I am delighted to hand over this iconic silverware to the city of Munich, and I trust they will look after the trophies with care – as I know they will look after all the visitors to the festival and the finals."

Women's final ambassador Steffi Jones said: "It is an honour for me to be part of the delegation bringing these prestigious trophies to Germany and Munich. The 2012 UEFA Women's Champions League final will be the highlight of the European women's club football calendar and I am already looking forward to being in the crowd at the game on 17 May."

Men's final ambassador Paul Breitner said: "I take great pride in being the ambassador for this season's UEFA Champions League final, especially as it will be played in my home town. The final is a real highlight for Munich and for the whole football season."

Following the ceremony, the two trophies will go on a tour of the city which will take them to key venues and finish with a special open-top bus parade on 14 May. Full details of the trophy tour will be available on UEFA.com.

On the same day in Munich, UEFA will also present a mini-pitch to the host city, to be used for grassroots football activities. The handover proceedings will be held at 14.30CET at Demleitner Strasse, Munich.

This is the third successive year a mini-pitch will be donated to the host city – the tradition started with the 2010 Madrid finals and aims to ensure a grassroots legacy for the UEFA club final venues. This season's UEFA Europa League final host city Bucharest will also receive one.

The mini-pitch is fully funded by UEFA's football education services. UEFA's mission as parent body of European football includes helping to cultivate the game's grassroots – the foundation on which elite football can thrive. UEFA has been reinforcing its grassroots activities in recent times, spreading its message across Europe to cover sectors such as football for the disabled. Children are also a special target audience in the campaign which highlights the joy of football.