Trophy Tour to Latin America
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Article summary
The UEFA Champions League trophy is set to visit four Latin American countries in March and April as part of a tour to celebrate the top European club competition.
Article body
The UEFA Champions League trophy will visit four Latin American countries in the coming two months as part of a tour to celebrate Europe's premier club competition.
Latin America first
The most coveted trophy in European club football will be on show in Latin America for the first time. The UEFA Champions League Trophy Tour – presented by Heineken – kicks off in Sao Paolo, Brazil, with a media day this coming Friday, 15 February, with the trophy on display for the following two days. The tour then moves to Rio de Janeiro (23/24 February),Buenos Aires (6 March), Santiago (15/16 March), Mexico City (5/6 April) and Monterrey (12/13 April).
Global brand
"The UEFA Champions League is a truly global brand attracting the world's best players, many of whom are from Latin America," said UEFA's marketing director Philippe Le Floc'h. "In fact in the group stage of the 2007/08 UEFA Champions League there were some 85 Brazilian players registered to play for the competing clubs – that is more than one in ten of all eligible players.
Hugely popular
"The UEFA Champions League is hugely popular in Latin American countries and the chance to experience the famous trophy up close is an opportunity to allow local fans to share in the magic of Europe's best club competition," Le Floc'h added.
Unique experience
"Heineken is sponsoring the UEFA Champions League for the third consecutive year," said Stefan Orlowski, Heineken N.V. director group commerce. "We want to share this unique and memorable experience with fans all over the world, and what better way than to be up close to the prestigious Trophy itself. Heineken is proud to be the only UEFA Champions League partner that can tour the Trophy outside Europe and into Latin America."
On display
In each country, the UEFA Champions League Trophy Tour will be launched with a press conference involving a Trophy Tour ambassador – normally an ex-player and local celebrities. The trophy will then be the centrepiece of a display together with signed football memorabilia and other football activities, including the exclusive chance for invitees to be photographed with the trophy, in a central location of the city.
Competition awareness
According to recent research (source: Global 21+ Study 2007 (by Sport + Markt)), awareness of the UEFA Champions League is as high in some countries in Latin America – e.g. 95 per cent in Brazil and 85 per cent in Mexico – as it is in Europe, where awareness levels are 95 per cent.
