EURO International Broadcast Centre opened
Monday, June 6, 2016
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The International Broadcast Centre in Paris – the heart of all broadcast operations at UEFA EURO 2016 – is open, offering state-of-the-art coverage of a month-long festival of football.
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The nerve centre for all broadcast operations at UEFA EURO 2016, the International Broadcast Centre (IBC) in Paris, has been officially opened.
The opening ceremony was attended by France's minister of state for sports Thierry Braillard, Paris's deputy mayor in charge of sport and tourism Jean-François Martins, and EURO 2016 SAS president Jacques Lambert, who were also given a tour of the centre.
Television signals from the ten venues in France will be delivered to the IBC for distribution to all UEFA broadcast partners. Footage of the 51 matches at UEFA EURO 2016 will then be transmitted across the globe as part of the state-of-the-art coverage of European national-team football's premium event.
The IBC is located at the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles exhibition complex in the 15th arrondissement of the French capital, and provides some 17,000 square metres of internal and external space. It houses technical, production and transmission facilities, such as TV studios, production areas, edit suites and offices, and is also the home of Livex, UEFA's content distribution platform. Some 40 broadcasters will be based on site at the IBC.
Construction work on the IBC has taken place over six weeks prior to the tournament, and over 650 people will be working there each day, including 200 UEFA staff in areas such as TV production, media rights and services, logistics, communications and media operations, media services and ICT operations. Special services are also available to personnel working at the IBC, such as shops and restaurants, to support practical needs and enable people to work efficiently and comfortably.
The IBC will be operational 24 hours a day, seven days a week, guaranteeing that every moment of UEFA EURO 2016 action can be seen throughout the world – from the opening ceremony on Friday to the presentation of the Henri Delaunay Cup to the winning captain at the Stade de France on 10 July.
UEFA Host Broadcast is responsible for supplying broadcast partners with live signals of all matches from UEFA EURO 2016 and all additional programming and services – bringing fans even closer to the tournament, the cities and the players.
Thierry Braillard, France's minister of state for sport
"EURO 2016 needed an 11th host site, and we are here. The IBC will be of crucial importance to the success of this EURO. This will be a celebration of football for the whole world. France has the opportunity to host the tournament for a third time, and has great expertise in staging major sporting events. France will be in the spotlight for a month, and the IBC will enable the event to be experienced in the best manner possible."
Jean-François Martins, deputy mayor of Paris in charge of sport and tourism
"Welcome to all those who are here to experience an exceptional month. As a host city, Paris has been given the responsibility of providing all those involved with an unbelievable experience. The IBC will ensure that fans see the best possible footage of this wonderful football festival over the next month."
Jacques Lambert, EURO 2016 SAS president
"In some ways, this is the kick-off of EURO 2016. The IBC will be a key element of the tournament – it will set the tone, the voice and colour of this competition, bringing together an array of the best broadcasters around the world."
