After more than four weeks and 51 football matches, EURO 2024 ends its end with its total fans again, it is likely to exceed 5 billion direct viewers. Certainly, the first international football championship in Europe retained its global attractiveness, but its comprehensive report card provides a more mixed image of the continent – than faded glories and harsh facts.
The most famous symbol of the decline in strength was the Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo. For years, he was considered one of the greatest sport talents, but in 39 of his presence on the field was clearly less effective.
Ronaldo’s tears were frustrated after he lost a penalty against Slovenia, reminding what he was in the past, but it could no longer be – like Europe itself, which struggled to keep its power, impact and importance.
But while Ronaldo (Portugal was eventually expelled by France in the quarter -finals), Italy cried. Because, if another reflection of European countries is needed on their way, the chaotic azzurrri is presented. As soon as the kings of elegance and elegance looked, Italy (who came out of Switzerland was not a player in the last 16th stage) appeared to be deprived of ideas, and played a brand of football that was tragic and lacked dynamic-closer to Europe’s approach to the current stormy economic waters.
Then there was France (hit by Spain in the semi -finals). Just days before the championship began, French President Emmanuel Macron described sudden parliamentary elections after European opinion polls reached the far right.
Captain Al -Bilad, Kylian Mbappe (of Cameroonian and Algerian origin), appealed to the young French voters to resist the rise of extremist right -wing extremism. Feelings were echoed by Ethima Konati and Orlene Chaamini and many other players in the ethnic French team.
However, after the first round of the vote, where the National Marai Party came out forward, its president, Jordan Bardela, announced that it would mess up the automatic right to the nationality of children born in France for parents other than France. In other words, such as people like mbapé, konaté and tchouamény.
Meanwhile, football that did not run in England, which did not follow football trends match Britain’s problems after Britain’s exit from the European Union. The painful progress of Gryth Southgate has been advanced in the collective stages in the group’s stages on the vision of Angela Hope, which extends in parallel with the general election campaign of Sonak. It was difficult to see both – but at least England reached the final.
Elsewhere, the Hungarian national team (which was canceled in the group stage) appeared in Germany driven by more than 3 billion euros (2.5 billion pounds) of government investment. Prime Minister VikTor Orbán, the other right -wing populist, is not just a football fan but someone who is not afraid to publish the game for political purposes.
The performance of the host country in Germany (Spain struck in a exciting quarter -final) was better on the field than many expected. But while traditional stereotypes emphasize the efficiency of the nation, the euro revealed that the railways are in a state of chaos, and they face financing issues and management difficulties. Thousands of fans have been left on the ways on stations platforms after industrial heart matches in Germany, which embodies the challenges in the infrastructure faced by many European countries now.
All this was assigned against the background of the ongoing war in Ukraine. Its national team finally ended in its group, but perhaps the most surprising thing was the extent of the struggle. After Russia’s invasion of 2022, football fans and players loudly expressed their support for Ukraine. But during this tournament, the signs of this solidarity were rare.
The cohesion in the streets
On the positive side, the lack of rioters on a large scale during this event was a fan. Some fans, like the masses from the Netherlands (the semi -finals of the beating), have emerged in the atmosphere of the parties they brought, while the soft power of the gangs of the kinship and the Teritan Army from Scotland (the group group) the magic of many.
But political divisions were never far away. While some fans sang the anti -Fladimir songs, the Serbian supporters arrived in Germany by buying that some were planning violence to support the Russian president.
Serbian supporters (canceled in the group stage) were subjected to the stadiums by competing fans from Croatia and Albania (both also at the group stage). A player from Türkiye (the quarter -finals) celebrated a goal using an extremist hand.
Companies’ fears
Evidence of turbulent Europe, uncomfortable with itself and not sure of its identity, was seen on the side of the company as well. Most of the EURO 2024 European sponsors were not European, as the largest group of China (Hisenesse, Vivo, BYD, Ali Express and Ali Pay) came.
However, with the launch of the euro, the European Union has announced plans to impose commercial sanctions on the Chinese electric vehicle by BYD-is an unfortunate overlap given the auto giant care deal with UEFA organizers.
There was also a noticeable contradiction to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where the German national team protested against the Gulf State over human rights issues. For this tournament, Qatar Airways landed on the doorstep as a major sponsor. But there were no protests – just a feeling that European companies and brands neither have money nor the appetite to take over their Asian competitors.
Despite the difficulties, the global interest in the tournament shows that there is still a lot to be celebrated in Europe. EURO 2024 had some great football, enthusiastic fans and sports moments to taste. But it cannot pay attention to the deeper distress that we are witnessing throughout the continent.
2024-12-20 09:51:00
