To manage to get the whole city involved. This is Rome’s goal with ten months to go until UEFA EURO 2020, the first touring European Championship in history, which will have “The Eternal City” as one of its twelve host locations. Daniele Frongia, Councillor for Sport, Youth Policies and Major Events for the City of Rome and new UEFA EURO 2020 Special Commissioner, spoke in an interview on the website sfogliaroma.it.

The Olympic Stadium will host the opening match of this most eagerly awaited European football event and will be the “theatre” for four further matches, three in the group stage and one in the quarter-finals. The councillor is sure that Italy’s capital will show its best face in welcoming the thousands of fans who will visit for the event.

“For the first time since the birth of the greatest European competition (1960), we will create a historic path from Piazza del Popolo to the Imperial Forums, which will welcome tourists, fans and families in one big event combining sport, culture and entertainment of all kinds,” announced Frongia in the interview. “I also want to stress that we will not forget the outskirts of the city, for which we will reserve specific initiatives in collaboration with the Football Federation. I’ve made a bet that we can get the whole city involved, and I intend on winning it.”

Rome has already experienced an intriguing “appetiser” of what’s to come in a few months’ time. On 12 June, on the occasion of the One Year To Go (exactly one year until the beginning of the tournament), through the organisation of the FIGC, Ponte Sant’Angelo was lit up turquoise, the official colour of UEFA EURO 2020, while the official logo “UEFA EURO 2020” was projected on the left and right banks of the Tiber River. A breathtaking panorama and light show – the lighting was the colour of sea-blue on the bridge with the logo in white. Passers-by simply couldn’t resist admiring the show and it was immortalised in countless selfies and videos. The symbol of this touring European Championship is a bridge, and the capital chose the Ponte Sant’Angelo, built by Emperor Hadrian in 134 AD, as the reflection of the tournament’s symbol in Rome.

Just as the city’s administration and Mayor Virginia Raggi have repeatedly reminded us, this is a great international event for which Rome has decided to team up with UEFA and FIGC, to demonstrate how football and the architectural beauty, history and culture of the capital can come together in perfect harmony. The city has made a fundamental contribution to the tournament, and its geographical position and historical significance makes the city one of the key locations. This contribution comes in perfect synergy with the FIGC, which, in addition to coordinating the Local Organising Committee (Loc), is working with the government and CONI to enhance this major international event as a driving factor of growth and national development.