Joint UEFA and European Commission campaign promoting climate action enters second season
Tuesday, October 25, 2022
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UEFA and the European Commission are launching a new advert for the second season of a three-year campaign which sees UEFA supporting the Commission in helping to raise public awareness about Europe’s climate and energy priorities.
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Following a successful first season in 2021/22, the campaign – a collaboration between UEFA and the flagship EU Green Deal – will go live again from this week with a brand-new spot to be shown this season across UEFA’s pan-European men’s and women’s club and national team competitions, including the iconic UEFA men’s Champions League and UEFA Women’s Champions League.
The new advert promotes EU messages on saving energy and encourages people to take everyday steps to help face the current energy crisis in Europe. The partnership between UEFA and the European Commission is a reminder of how important it is for European football to support societal priorities.
“Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has sparked an energy crisis felt in Europe and around the world. The next few winters will be tough, but we have what it takes to rise to this challenge. Simple steps like the ones we see in the video can make a big change, if we all turn down our heating by 1 degree Celsius we can save 10 billion cubic meters of gas. Energy savings are also hugely important in our fight against the climate crisis. In the end it needs a team effort: if everyone contributes, we will get through the next winters and be ready for a greener future.”
Climate Pact support
The joint TV campaign fulfils a key objective of UEFA’s commitment to the European Climate Pact, which invites citizens, communities and organisations to help the European Union achieve the Green Deal and Europe’s transition to an economy with net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
UEFA announced its support for the Pact in December 2020, committing to leverage the global popularity of its elite competitions by running a joint three-year TV advertising campaign to promote the Green Deal.
Combining the EU’s leadership on climate action with European football’s visibility and influence, this key pillar of the close partnership between the EC and UEFA aims to help achieve the EU’s vision of a climate neutral economy by 2050.
“UEFA and the EU are united in the face of major societal challenges such as energy and climate. This is the European Model of Sport in action, and UEFA will continue to swiftly deliver on the commitments made with our EU partners.”
UEFA Football Sustainability Strategy
Through its Football Sustainability Strategy 2030 - ‘Strength through Unity’ - UEFA wants to inspire, activate and accelerate collective action to respect human rights and the environment within the context of European football.
In line with the UN Race to Zero campaign, UEFA has committed to the goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030 – in view of achieving net zero carbon by 2040 within UEFA, across UEFA events and collaboratively across European football.
“The message that we are delivering with this campaign is simple: each small gesture to save energy and protect our environment counts. But we are also focused on what we must do in football ourselves, engaging all our football stakeholders. Through UEFA’s Football Sustainability Strategy, we are working on detailed policies and actions at all levels with our EU partners and the entire European football ecosystem to ensure that football plays its role in European environment and sustainability priorities.”
Successful first season
The advert for the first season – #EveryTrickCounts – proved to be a resounding success on various fronts:
• In 2021/22, the spot was shown at over 300 matches across UEFA’s club and national team competitions in both women’s and men’s football, including futsal.
• The spot was aired almost 3,000 times in the EU markets.
• For the UEFA men’s Champions League final, the spot reached an estimated unique audience of around 35 million. The average unique audience for a men’s UEFA Champions League matchday was 24 million.
• The LED boarding brought a powerful visual boost for EU identity, with the EU flag and EU Green Deal hashtag.
Reinforcing EC-UEFA ties
The launch of the new advert follows on from the renewal earlier this month of the EC-UEFA Arrangement for Cooperation, signed by UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin and EC Vice-President Margaritis Schinas in Brussels.
The agreement takes collaboration between the two organisations to a new level by focusing on critical European Union priorities such as climate action, equality for all and social inclusion.