UEFA President champions 2020 vision
Wednesday, September 21, 2016
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UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin has hailed UEFA EURO 2020 as a "unique and memorable" celebration of the best of national team football in all four corners of Europe.
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UEFA's new President Aleksander Čeferin praised the idea behind UEFA EURO 2020 at the official launch ceremony.
Speaking at the event on Wednesday, Mr Čeferin welcomed the innovative move to stage the tournament at 12 venues across Europe to celebrate the championship's 60th anniversary. He also hailed the choice of Wembley Stadium in the English capital as an outstanding setting for the tournament's semi-finals and final in four years' time.
Mr Čeferin was attending the unveiling ceremony for the London host city logo and 2020 tournament's visual identity. He was joined at London City Hall by the city's mayor Sadiq Khan, English Football Association (FA) chairman Greg Clarke and chief executive Martin Glenn, and presidents and general secretaries of the various other host countries.
"I am delighted that we are here in England," said the UEFA President, "the birthplace of football, the country that gave the game to the world, to take an important early step along the road to the European Championship final tournament in four years' time – a tournament that will be unique and memorable in a variety of different ways."
He added: "What better way could there be to celebrate football than to take the EURO final tournament for one single occasion to all four corners of the continent?"
Further logo launches will take place at ceremonies in the 11 other host cities – Amsterdam, Baku, Bilbao, Bucharest, Budapest, Copenhagen, Dublin, Glasgow, Munich, Rome and Saint Petersburg – over the coming months.
"The chance to host the semi-finals and the final of EURO 2020 is a tremendous privilege for the English FA – I'm looking forward to it immensely," said Mr Clarke. "London has a long tradition of hosting great events. We have a wonderful stadium and we have cultural diversity, which will make all the members of the European family feel welcome, and we think we'll do a good job. We're looking forward to being part of a great team to deliver a great competition."