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UEFA in 2019 – Part 1: Heading into the future

It’s been another memorable year for UEFA at the vanguard of European football. In the first part of our review of events in 2019, we look back at the highlights from January to June.

Aleksander Čeferin was re-elected as UEFA President for a four-year term
Aleksander Čeferin was re-elected as UEFA President for a four-year term ©UEFA via Getty Images

UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin is re-elected 

• Football mourns the loss of two UEFA pioneers, Lennart Johansson and Pierre Delaunay 

• UEFA launches a far-reaching women’s football strategy 

• Video assistant referees (VARs) are introduced in UEFA competitions  

• UEFA social responsibility programmes and campaigns to promote diversity, inclusion and accessibility in football make continued headway

JANUARY

UEFA’s latest club licensing benchmarking report says that for the first time, Europe’s top-division clubs together generated bottom line profits of €615m in the 2017 financial year – reflecting the positive impact of financial fair play.

UEFA mourns the death of Pierre Delaunay, the body’s General Secretary between 1956 and 1959, at the age of 99.

2018 Team of the Year
2018 Team of the Year©UEFA.com

Five newcomers feature in the UEFA.com Fans’ Team of the Year for 2018 - Marc-André ter Stegen, Virgil van Dijk, Raphaël Varane, N'Golo Kanté and Kylian Mbappé all make the winning XI.

FEBRUARY

Aleksander Čeferin addresses the Rome Congress
Aleksander Čeferin addresses the Rome Congress©UEFA.com

UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin is re-elected for a four-year term at UEFA’s Congress in Rome, and insists that European football should remain "respectful, respectable and respected."

UEFA unveils its strategy for 2019-24 at the Rome Congress - aiming to ensure that the organisation remains true to its core values as the governing body of European football.

UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin and European Club Association (ECA) Chairman Andrea Agnelli sign a renewed Memorandum of Understanding during the Congress week in Rome to underline the two bodies’ commitment to ensuring European football’s well-being and stability.

The video assistant referee (VAR) system is used for the first time in a UEFA competition at the start of the UEFA Champions League knockout phase.

Virgil van Dijk supports ICRC family reunion programme

Liverpool FC defender Virgil van Dijk presents a €100,000 cheque from UEFA to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to assist the latter’s mission to reunite families caught up in situations of armed conflict and other situations of violence.

MARCH

UEFA reveals its initial star-studded line-up of UEFA EURO 2020 ambassadors tasked with promoting the final tournament.

UEFA EURO 2020 mascot Skillzy
UEFA EURO 2020 mascot Skillzy©UEFA.com

The UEFA EURO 2020 mascot – Skillzy – is unveiled.

APRIL

At UEFA’s #EqualGame conference in London, UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin urges Europe’s football community to continue the drive for greater equality, diversity and inclusion.

MAY

#TimeForAction gives impetus to women's football

UEFA launches a dedicated women's football strategy for the first time - #TimeForAction aims to double the number of female players in Europe by 2024 and boost the popularity of the UEFA Women’s Champions League and UEFA Women’s EURO.

JUNE

Football mourns Lennart Johansson

Lennart Johansson, the Swede who was UEFA President from 1990 to 2007 and oversaw massive changes within UEFA and European football, passes away at the age of 89.

UEFA’s latest Football and Social Responsibility Report highlights projects and accomplishments across Europe in the 2017/18 season.

At its latest Grassroots Conference in Minsk, UEFA stresses the crucial importance that grassroots football has for the game's essential health. Former Real Madrid and Spain superstar Raúl González is a popular guest of honour

We’ll be featuring the highlights from July to December tomorrow