Hamburg is one of the venues for the 2024 European Football Championship. Now the responsible State Council is reporting on the specific plans. This is what fans and residents can expect.
The anticipation is slowly increasing in the Hanseatic city, as Hamburg is one of the ten host cities for the European Football Championship in Germany. From June 14th to July 14th, tens of thousands of fans will flock to the five sold-out European Championship games in the Hanseatic city. The organizers want to organize a four-week football festival in the “host city” of Hamburg.
The Heiligengeistfeld will become the central meeting point for football fans from all over Europe. Up to 40,000 spectators can watch the European Championship games free of charge on a large screen. “We are well prepared for a five-digit number of viewers,” said State Councilor Christoph Holstein (SPD) to NDR. According to him, the trend towards large events is increasing again after the corona pandemic.
In addition to the popular public viewing, a so-called fan village is planned where visitors can try out various football-related activities. “We don’t just want to have the football experience on the screen, we also really want people to talk to each other about sport and football here in this city,” announced Holstein. The arena will host, among other things, blind football and senior tournaments.
Safe and peaceful tournament
The demand for overnight accommodation in Hamburg increased significantly after the draw for the European Championship finals at the beginning of December. Holstein is expecting many international guests, especially from Albania, the Netherlands and Turkey. It promises a safe and peaceful atmosphere for all fans.
The Volksparkstadion, where the European Championship games will take place, has almost been renovated. The second division football team HSV has invested around 25 to 30 million euros in modernizing the sound and floodlight system, the sanitary areas, the places for wheelchair users and the air conditioning in the VIP area. “The draw gave me a real boost personally and also those around us,” said Christian Lenz, who manages the work in and around the Volksparkstadion.
A total of five European Championship games will be played in Hamburg, including four group games. The highlights are the Netherlands’ game against the yet-to-be-determined play-off winner on June 16th, Albania’s game against World Cup third place Croatia on June 19th and the Czech Republic’s game against Turkey on June 26th. There will also be a quarter-final in the Hanseatic city on July 5th.