Freshwater puts its heart into the Football Association of Wales’ UEFA Euro 2020 Bid

Freshwater has worked with the Football Association of Wales [FAW] on the branding, design and submission of a ‘bid dossier’ that kicks off a process that could see Cardiff selected as one of 13 host cities for the UEFA EURO 2020 Championships.

Freshwater has worked with the Football Association of Wales [FAW] on the branding, design and submission of a ‘bid dossier’ that kicks off a process that could see Cardiff selected as one of 13 host cities for the UEFA EURO 2020 Championships.

The FAW bid – entitled ‘Heart of the Celebration’ – centres around Cardiff’s 74,154 capacity Millennium Stadium and was formally submitted to European football’s governing body on the 25th April. The bid process follows UEFA’s decision to break with tradition and mark the 60th anniversary of the Championships by staging the tournament in 13 cities across Europe. After initial interest was shown by 32 host cities, 19 eventually submitted formal bids to UEFA.

Earlier today (30th April) at a press conference, FAW Chief Executive Jonathan Ford spoke publically for the first time since the submission of the bid. Mr Ford was joined at the ‘official launch’ of the bid by First Minister of Wales, Carwyn Jones, current Welsh football manager, Chris Coleman, leader of the City of Cardiff Council, Councillor Phil Bale and Group Chief Executive of the Welsh Rugby Union, Roger Lewis.

The FAW’s bid has also attracted significant support from a number of important stakeholders, including the Cardiff Hoteliers’ Association, Cardiff and Bristol Airports and all major transport operators. Real Madrid star Gareth Bale, Wales’s most expensive football export, has also lent his personal support to the bid and features prominently on the branding, performing his famous ‘heart’ goal celebration.

“Cardiff’s unique match-day atmosphere and experience, both inside and outside the Millennium Stadium, was the inspiration for the Heart of the Celebration strapline and design concept,” explains Freshwater’s brand manager Simon John. “We wanted get across the message that the Millennium Stadium, in the heart of the capital city of Wales, has the potential to bring something really special to the 60th anniversary celebration of the UEFA EURO 2020 Championships.

“The bid document itself was a comprehensive publication that needed to demonstrate the ability of the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff and Wales to meet UEFA’s stringent logistical, technical, commercial and legal hosting criteria. Through the branding we wanted to support this and demonstrate that we can deliver a world-class experience for the organisers, teams and their supporters, but also that the people of Wales will get behind the tournament and create a real party atmosphere.”

Alan Hamer, the FAW’s Bid Director added: “It was important to clearly convey within our UEFA EURO 2020 bid submission, how Wales would help UEFA celebrate the 60th anniversary of the European Football Championships.

“We are passionate about sport, the Millennium Stadium is our national icon and Cardiff’s match day experience is held in high regard by spectators and event organisers – this all linked in neatly with our Heart of the Celebration bid strapline which runs through all of our bid related documentation.

“We are grateful to Freshwater for their creative input during the bid process and believe we have submitted a compelling case for Cardiff to be chosen as one of the 13 Host Cities for EURO 2020.”

As an addition to the official bid document submitted to UEFA, Freshwater worked with FAW to design an 8-page Heart of the Celebration bid brochure, as well as branding for the launch press conference. FAW also commissioned a short film, narrated by Welsh football manager Chris Coleman, which used the heart branding to capture the unique elements of the Wales bid.

The bid brochure can be seen online at www.faw.org.uk. Anyone wishing to stay up to date with the latest news and developments on the FAW bid can follow its progress on Twitter @WalesEuro2020. An announcement on the 13 host cities is expected to be made by UEFA on 19th September.