The Fan Zone Augustusplatz opened on Friday afternoon with an emotional speech by Burkhard Jung, Mayor of the City of Leipzig, and a multi-religious kick- off.
“We are all really excited and also a little nervous," said the mayor to the visitors present. He thanked all the helpers and the preparation team, the "many hard-working people who have made sure that the upcoming festival is prepared."
"I am sure that we will experience a wonderful football festival," Jung continued. He is looking forward to great days, a great cultural program and the international flair: "I hope that, no matter where we come from, we will hug each other and celebrate this festival together." The mayor then officially declared the Fan Fest open.
This was followed by the multi-religious kick-off with representatives of various denominations. Pastor Thomas Bohne - Oratorium Leipzig, Pastor Martin Hundertmark - Evangelical Thomas Church in Leipzig, Rabbi Zsolt Balla - IRG Leipzig & Saxony State Association of Jewish Communities, Regional Manager Tayyar Kocak - Muslim Community Leipzig as well as Ulrike Schmidt and Olaf Olschewski from the National Team Fan Club spoke. They all emphasized the connecting element of football and this European Championship. Two white doves rose and a match ball was symbolically handed over to Burkhard Jung.
The program in Fan Zone on Saturday and Sunday
Tomorrow, Saturday, there will be a concert by the Thomaner youth choir and the chamber choir of the Anna Magdalena Bach School at 1:15 p.m. and a concert by the symphonic wind orchestra of the Leipzig "Johann Sebastian Bach" music school at 1:45 p.m. The ball will roll on the small football field between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. at the inclusion football tournament. Public viewings will be offered at 3 p.m. (Hungary - Switzerland), 6 p.m. (Spain - Croatia) and 9 p.m. (Italy - Albania). On Sunday, a children's tournament will take place on the football field between 1p.m. and 5 p.m. and the Krystallpalast Varieté will take the stage at 1.20 p.m. The public viewings: 3 p.m. Poland - Netherlands, 6 p.m. Slovenia - Denmark and 9 p.m. Serbia - England.
Background
The Augustusplatz Fan Zone is the centerpiece of the EURO 2024 Festival. Football fans, Leipzig residents and guests of the city are cordially invited to the program with concerts, public viewings, sporting performances, activities for families, e-sports and much more from June 14 to July 14.
Up to 15,000 football fans can cheer on the public viewings across the entire square. A very good response is expected, particularly for the games of the German national team (preliminary round: June 14/opening game against Scotland, June 19 against Hungary and June 23 against Switzerland) as well as for the match days in Leipzig. The games in Leipzig will take place on June 18 (9 p.m.: Portugal vs. Czech Republic), June 21 (9 p.m.: Netherlands vs. France) and June 24 (9 p.m.: Croatia vs. Italy) in the Leipzig Stadium. There will also be a round of 16 match on July 2 (9 p.m.).
