One week to go: seven reasons to buy EURO tickets
Friday, July 3, 2015
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The ticket window for UEFA EURO 2016 closes at 20.16CET next Friday – if you want to apply to be in France next year but have not yet done so, here are some reasons why you should.
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• See Europe's best players up close
With the tournament set to be the biggest EURO finals in history, there will be no shortage of stellar talent on show. A look at the leading scorers in qualifying bears that out, with Robert Lewandowski, Zlatan Ibrahimović, Cristiano Ronaldo, Thomas Müller, Wayne Rooney and Gareth Bale occupying six of the top ten places.
• France – a land with cultural and artistic heritage
France is a land of thinkers: Victor Hugo, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire and Jean-Paul Sartre. France is a land of great artists, composers and architects: Paul Cézanne, Claude Monet, Hector Berlioz, Maurice Ravel, Le Corbusier. Food and drink also pretty good, so we hear.
• Be a part of football history
Since the first UEFA European Championship final in 1960 helped make the name of Soviet Union goalkeeper Lev Yashin, the tournament has provided great stories; that Antonín Panenka penalty in '76, Marco van Basten's screamer in the 1988 decider; Zinédine Zidane's epochal performances in 2000. Here is your chance to tell your grandchildren: 'I was there.'
• Twenty-four teams – the biggest-ever EURO finals
The European Qualifiers are past the halfway stage, with the first 24-team EURO meaning that more nations than ever will have a stake in the tournament. Next summer, France will be 'Le Rendez-Vous' for a huge number of football fans – who would not want to be part of that multicultural experience?
• Soak up the party atmosphere in the tournament Fan Zones
The joy of being in the host cities is that – even once you have seen the galleries, tasted the food and done a bit of shopping – there is always something to do. The Fan Zones in all ten host cities offer activities every day, and the opportunity to watch finals matches on the big screens with other supporters at night.
• Visit some of Europe's best modern stadiums
The venues in Bordeaux, Nice, Saint-Etienne, Marseille, Lyon, Lille, Nice and Toulouse have all been built or substantially refurbished for the finals, offering a superb experience for supporters. The two in Paris – the Stade de France and the Parc des Princes – already have a worldwide reputation. There will be no better places to watch football next summer.
• Watch your country lift the trophy?
EUROs are unpredictable. Yes, Germany and Spain have won three each, and France twice, but this is a tournament where unlikely sides can do well. Who would have thought Denmark would triumph in 1992, or Greece in 2004? All 24 teams at the finals have a chance to win it – could it be your nation's turn to do something truly extraordinary?