Last 16 await Friday’s draw

The UEFA Champions League round of 16 draw in Nyon will be streamed live on UEFA.com from 12.00CET on Friday 16 December – and will feature seven former title holders.

The lineup for the draw contains seven past winners of Europe’s premier club competition as well as four teams new to the knockout stage. Though FC Basel 1893 have previously appeared in a second group stage, this is the first time the Swiss outfit have reached the round of 16, while SSC Napoli, FC Zenit St Petersburg and APOEL FC – the first Cypriot representatives to have come so far – are also in uncharted territory.

Two seeding pots have been formed: one consisting of group winners and the other of runners-up.

Group winners: FC Bayern München, FC Internazionale Milano, SL Benfica, Real Madrid CF, Chelsea FC, Arsenal FC, APOEL FC, FC Barcelona

Group runners-up: SSC Napoli, PFC CSKA Moskva, FC Basel 1893, Olympique Lyonnais, Bayer 04 Leverkusen, Olympique de Marseille, FC Zenit St Petersburg, AC Milan

Seeded group winners will be away in the round of 16 first legs on 14/15 and 21/22 February and at home in the return matches on 6/7 and 13/14 March. No team can play a club from their group or any side from the same association.

The draw for the remainder of the competition will be held on 16 March and the tournament concludes at the Fußball Arena München on 19 May. Bayern are looking to become the first team to play a European Cup final in their own stadium since AS Roma in 1984.

Group winners
A: FC Bayern München (GER)
Can play: CSKA, Basel, Lyon, Marseille, Zenit, Milan.
Qualified as: third place, Germany
Last season: round of 16
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 14
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: winners (four times)

B: FC Internazionale Milano (ITA)
Can play: Basel, Lyon, Leverkusen, Marseille, Zenit
Qualified as: runners-up, Italy
Last season: quarter-finals
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 10
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: winners (three times)

C: SL Benfica (POR)
Can play: Napoli, CSKA, Lyon, Leverkusen, Marseille, Zenit, Milan
Last season: UEFA Europa League semi-finals
Qualified as: runners-up, Portugal
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 6
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: winners (twice)

D: Real Madrid CF (ESP)
Can play: Napoli, CSKA, Basel, Leverkusen, Marseille, Zenit, Milan
Qualified as: runners-up, Spain
Last season: semi-finals
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 15
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: winners (nine times)

E: Chelsea FC (ENG)
Can play: Napoli, CSKA, Basel, Lyon, Marseille, Zenit, Milan
Qualified as: runners-up, England
Last season: quarter-finals
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 9
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: runners-up

F: Arsenal FC (ENG)
Can play: Napoli, CSKA, Basel, Lyon, Leverkusen, Zenit, Milan
Qualified as: fourth place, England
Last season: round of 16
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 13
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: runners-up

G: APOEL FC (CYP)
Can play: Napoli, CSKA, Basel, Lyon, Leverkusen, Marseille, Milan
Qualified as: champions, Cyprus
Last season: UEFA Europa League play-offs
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 1
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: group stage

H: FC Barcelona (ESP, holders)
Can play: Napoli, CSKA, Basel, Lyon, Leverkusen, Marseille, Zenit
Qualified as: holders / champions, Spain
Last season: winners
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 15
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: winners (four times)

Runners-up
A: SSC Napoli (ITA)
Can play: Benfica, Madrid, Chelsea, Arsenal, APOEL, Barcelona
Qualified as: third place, Italy
Last season: UEFA Europa League round of 32
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 0
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: second round

B: PFC CSKA Moskva (RUS)
Can play: Bayern, Benfica, Madrid, Chelsea, Arsenal, APOEL, Barcelona
Qualified as: runners-up, Russia
Last season: UEFA Europa League round of 16
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 5
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: quarter-finals

C: FC Basel 1893 (SUI)
Can play: Bayern, Inter, Madrid, Chelsea, Arsenal, APOEL, Barcelona
Last season: UEFA Europa League round of 32
Qualified as: champions, Switzerland
Seasons in UEFA Champions League: 3
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: second group stage

D: Olympique Lyonnais (FRA)
Can play: Bayern, Inter, Benfica, Chelsea, Arsenal, APOEL, Barcelona
Qualified as: third place, France
Last season: round of 16
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 11
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: semi-finals

E: Bayer 04 Leverkusen (GER)
Can play: Inter, Benfica, Real Madrid, Arsenal, APOEL, Barcelona
Qualified as: runners-up, Germany
Last season: UEFA Europa League round of 16
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 6
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: runners-up

F: Olympique de Marseille (FRA)
Can play: Bayern, Inter, Benfica, Madrid, Chelsea, APOEL, Barcelona
Qualified as: runners-up, France
Last season: round of 16
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 7
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: winners (once)

G: FC Zenit St Petersburg (RUS)
Can play: Bayern, Inter, Benfica, Madrid, Chelsea, Arsenal, Barcelona
Qualified as: champions, Russia
Last season: UEFA Europa League round of 16
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 1
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: group stage

H: AC Milan (ITA)
Can play: Bayern, Benfica, Madrid, Chelsea, Arsenal, APOEL
Qualified as: champions, Italy
Last season: round of 16
Previous seasons in UEFA Champions League: 14
Previous European Champion Clubs’ Cup best: winners (seven times)

 

From: http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=1732005.html

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2007-to date: A new era begins

A new era began for UEFA in January 2007, when Frenchman Michel Platini, one of the world’s top players from the 1980s, was elected as UEFA president at the XXXI Ordinary UEFA Congress in Dusseldorf. Lennart Johansson was named Honorary UEFA president after 17 years of outstanding service to European football.

Michel Platini came to the UEFA presidency after a magnificent career as a player with AS Nancy-Lorraine, AS Saint-Etienne and Juventus at club level – plus three European Footballer of the Year awards, and a proud record of 72 appearances and 41 goals at international level with France – lifting the UEFA European Championship trophy as captain on home soil in 1984. He then served as France’s national-team coach from 1988 to 1992, and made a smooth transition to the role of football politician and administrator, occupying the key post of co-president of the 1998 FIFA World Cup organising committee for the tournament in his home country.

Developments at UEFA and within the European game continued apace. In April 2007, UEFA’s Executive Committee decided to award the UEFA EURO 2012 final round to Poland and Ukraine. The decision meant that joint hosts would be staging a EURO final round for the third time, after Belgium and the Netherlands in 2000, and Austria and Switzerland in 2008.

At the tenth extraordinary UEFA Congress in Zurich in May 2007, statutory amendments were made which, among other things, led to the creation of a Professional Football Strategic Council within UEFA, comprising UEFA’s vice-presidents and representatives of the European clubs, leagues and players. In addition, the title of the head of UEFA’s administration reverted back to general secretary. On 1 June 2007, David Taylor, the former chief executive of the Scottish Football Association, took over as UEFA’s new general secretary to lead the organisation into a fascinating future. Gianni Infantino was named as deputy general Secretary to Mr Taylor. Together with a loyal and strong administration, the team of leaders has been patiently steering UEFA’s course for the coming years.

Mr Platini’s presidency began with a call at the Extraordinary Congress in Zurich in May for an end to the strife that has affected football’s health. The creation of a Professional Football Strategy Council was described by Mr Platini as “a crucial step, with an eye to gathering together all football families. I call officially on the major and important clubs in European football to join together with all the other clubs to engage in a fruitful, productive and democratic dialogue with the other members of the European football family,” he said. “UEFA’s door is wide open – join us and, I promise you, you will not be disappointed.”

The subsequent formation of the European Club Association (ECA) and the signing in January 2008 of a Memorandum of Understanding between the new body – representing the interests of clubs at European level – and UEFA, the governing body of European football, paved the way for harmony to return to football between the governing bodies and the clubs. As part of the Memorandum of Understanding, it was agreed to distribute every four years an amount from the UEFA European Championship to national associations for them to pass on to their clubs who have contributed to the successful staging of a European Championship. In the autumn of 2007, a keynote Memorandum of Understanding was also signed with the European division of the players’ union FIFPro as dialogue bore encouraging fruit.

The invaluable dialogue between UEFA and football’s stakeholders also resulted in changes to the formats of UEFA’s club competitions, approved by the UEFA Executive Committee in November. Between 2009 and 2012, 22 sides will qualify directly for the 32-team UEFA Champions League group stage – the third-placed clubs from the associations ranked between 1 and 3 in the ranking list, and the champions of countries ranked from 10 to 12 are added – instead of the previous 16, and the UEFA Champions League final will be played on a Saturday from 2010. For the 2009/10 season, the venerable UEFA Cup was replaced after 37 years by the UEFA Europa League, featuring a 48-team group stage, and breathing new sporting and commercial life into European club football’s second competition.

On the national-team front, the UEFA EURO 2008 final round in Austria and Switzerland was an outstanding success in commercial and sporting terms. Moreover, even as preparatory work for the 2008 football festival reached boiling point, UEFA was looking even further ahead – in the direction of eastern Europe, to be precise – with the Executive Committee choosing Poland and Ukraine as hosts of UEFA EURO 2012. In September 2008, the EURO final-round field was increased by UEFA’s Executive Committee from 16 to 24 for the 2016 event, in what is seen as a natural development for the popular national-team game. In May 2010, France was chosen by the UEFA Executive Committee to be the host of UEFA EURO 2016.

UEFA’s tireless campaigning continues on behalf of various causes for the sake of football’s well-being. A “zero tolerance” policy is being pursued against violence and racism in particular. Social responsibility is no idle phrase at UEFA. Crucial support is being given to the Football Against Racism in Europe (FARE) network, and UEFA backing for land-mine victims was the focal point of work with the International Committee of the Red Cross at UEFA EURO 2008. Support has been forthcoming as well for, among others, football associations affected by natural disasters, homeless players, disabled players and footballers with learning difficulties, as well as youngsters in regions affected by hostilities, and the 53 member associations are continuing to benefit fully from the ambitious HatTrick programme.

The list of ongoing work stretches into the future. Intensive political and diplomatic dialogue with the European Union continues in a variety of areas. UEFA is also listening to the fans, and a first-ever meeting in 2007 between supporter groups and the European body came about because UEFA wants to get closer to the fans who are the game’s lifeblood. The battle against doping – in and out-of-competition blood testing was carried out at UEFA EURO 2008 for the first time – corruption and illegal betting in football goes on unabated, with the latter campaign leading to the strengthening of the UEFA Betting and Fraud Detection System in 2009, with more than 29,000 matches now checked each season. In September 2009 UEFA’s Executive Committee approved a Financial Fair Play concept to improve the financial fairness in European competitions, as well as the long-term stability of European club football. In the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, two additional assistant referees are being deployed in an experiment to look at ways of helping referees’ decision-making. The top referees of the future are now being given expert guidance at UEFA’s Centre of Refereeing Excellence (CORE) in Nyon, which was launched in the summer of 2010.

The Respect campaign, which was initiated by Michel Platini before the start of the 2008 UEFA European Championship final round, is aimed at encouraging mutual respect between players, coaches, officials and fans, and was a cornerstone of the tournament. Its widespread exposure throughout host cities contributed greatly to the convivial and joyful atmosphere both on and off the pitch, as well as inside and outside stadiums across Austria and Switzerland. As a consequence of the positive reaction to the campaign, the Respect initiative has been extended to all UEFA competitions and events, and is also being spread by the football family at national and local levels. UEFA’s view is that there must be respect for the difference and diversity which enriches Europe, with a specific focus on countering racism, violence, xenophobia and homophobia, as well as giving reinforced backing to our partners who promote sport for the disabled.

In September 2009, the UEFA Executive Committee reviewed the structure of UEFA’s marketing and commercial operations and approved the creation of a new company wholly owned by European football’s governing body. The new company – UEFA Events SA – will be responsible for UEFA’s business and commercial operations. David Taylor was appointed as chief executive of the new company as of 1 October 2009, and UEFA deputy general secretary Gianni Infantino was appointed as UEFA general secretary. He took up this role on the same date.

UEFA works according to eleven key values – appropriately, the same number as a football team – that should serve as the basis for the body’s activities and dialogue, on behalf of European football, with the political, economic, social and sporting world. Michel Platini presented the eleven key values in his address at the XXXIII Ordinary UEFA Congress in Copenhagen, Denmark, in March 2009. The eleven values cover the landscape of UEFA’s activities – from unity and leadership, good governance and autonomy to youth protection and education, sporting integrity and financial fair play – with the promise that football will always come first in all that UEFA does.

On 22 March 2011, at the XXXV Ordinary UEFA Congress in Paris, Michel Platini was re-elected by acclamation for a second four-year term. He listed the fight against corruption, financial fair play, and the need to protect football’s essential values for future generations as key priorities for the coming period.

After more than five decades of existence, UEFA’s voice continues to ring loud, proud and clear – with football’s well-being at the heart of its work throughout the game.

From: http://www.uefa.com/uefa/aboutuefa/organisation/history/chapter=5/index.html

2000-2007: Moving into the future

From the start of the 1990s, European football underwent a series of dramatic changes. The game became more commercially-oriented, and there were considerable developments in political, social and legal terms. Football was now not only an important social phenomenon – the game had become extremely big business, with huge sums of money at stake, and many stakeholders and interest groups involved.

As European football’s governing body, UEFA had to meet these various changes and developments head on. The organisation began to gradually turn itself from an administrative body into a modern business concern with a corporate philosophy – conducting itself more like a business, while at the same time protecting the integrity of the sport and balancing all of the divergent elements with an interest in football.

From 1987 onwards, UEFA experienced dramatic growth in terms of staff and budget. There were also the effects, particularly from a legal point of view, of a Europe without borders; TV rights matters and the rise of more sophisticated and aggressive marketing techniques; football clubs being quoted on the stock market; increasing involvement of political bodies in football; the growing influence and power of Europe’s leading football clubs. Football’s commercial growth, as well as the resultant legal and political challenges confronting the organisation, increased the pressure on UEFA to adapt without delay and ask itself how it wished to exist within the game’s new realities. One decision was for the organisation to move to the western Swiss town of Nyon in 1995 after three decades based in the Swiss federal capital, Berne, and open a new headquarters – the House of European Football – on the banks of Lake Geneva in autumn 1999.

In December 1999, the UEFA Executive Committee decided to go ahead with the revamping of European football’s governing body. The administrative set-up underwent an overhaul, new priorities were set, and UEFA’s administrative secretariat, renamed the UEFA Administration, was now led by a chief executive, Gerhard Aigner, who had been general secretary since 1989. Seven divisions were set up, each dealing with specific areas of football and UEFA’s daily affairs. The administration continued to work alongside UEFA’s committees and expert panels dealing with every fact of modern-day football.

Around this time, it was also recognised that the clubs and professional leagues should be given greater representation within UEFA’s activities. UEFA pursued an intensification of dialogue with the top clubs and leagues, while maintaining its long-standing bond with the national associations. It was evident that to maintain its credibility, in both sporting and commercial terms, UEFA had to represent the entire spectrum of the football family – and this had to include the elite clubs, who generate considerable revenue through their participation in the major European competitions. The launching of the European Club Forum in summer 2002 led to intensified dialogue between UEFA and Europe’s major clubs, just over 100 of whom were represented in the forum.

Lars-Christer Olsson’s appointment as UEFA chief executive to replace the retiring Gerhard Aigner meant that two Swedes were at UEFA’s helm from the start of 2004. Lennart Johansson was elected for a fourth term of office as UEFA president at the Stockholm Congress in April 2002, after 12 eventful years which had seen UEFA change into a modern business organisation in tune with the times. The Scandinavian duo were in place to lead UEFA through its 50th anniversary celebrations in 2004, in which a host of events and special activities took place in a special year for the European football community.

The following period saw UEFA continue to pursue its quest for greater legal certainty for sport and the recognition of sport’s specific nature within the framework of future European Union legislation, to ensure sport’s well-being in the future. Dialogue with the EU focused on concrete issues facing sport and on how the EU institutions, the EU member states and the European football authorities could provide a comprehensive and robust legal framework for European sport in general and football in particular.

Within UEFA, a fully-owned affiliated company, UEFA Euro 2008 SA, was set up to implement the organisation of UEFA EURO 2008 in Austria and Switzerland. The fight against anti-doping was stepped up, with a new anti-doping unit created within the UEFA administration, and in-and-out of competition tests increased across the full palette of UEFA’s competitions.

In the club competitions, the UEFA Champions League – Europe’s leading club competition, and previously the European Champion Clubs’ Cup – celebrated its 50th anniversary and continued to prove an outstanding sporting and commercial attraction, with media and marketing successes going hand-in-hand with memorable football featuring the world’s top players. The format introduced for the 2003/04 season – one group stage and a knockout phase beginning with 16 teams – remained in place. At the same time, work to enhance the UEFA Cup’s image was ongoing, with the introduction of a 40-team group stage a key step forward. On the national-team scene, UEFA EURO 2004 in Portugal broke records across the board, and the glorious unpredictability of football was confirmed when the outsiders Greece took the title.

The UEFA club licensing system was in place in time for the 2004/05 season, with the aim being to provide a framework for clubs to run themselves more efficiently. The system aims to improve quality standards in European football, including improvement of clubs’ economic and financial capabilities, through the installation of appropriate financial tools, as well as the adaptation of their sporting, administrative and legal infrastructures to meet UEFA’s requirements.

UEFA also undertook untiring campaign work in various social and humanitarian areas. It joined with the pan-European Football Against Racism in Europe network in a concerted drive to eliminate racism and intolerance from football both on and off the pitch. Partnerships were forged with other specific bodies as UEFA looked to support the belief that football could indeed be used a force to benefit society.

As football eased its way further into the new millennium, the authorities began looking at ways of enabling the game to be played on artificial playing surfaces at the highest level. Following pilot studies, UEFA decided in November 2004 that matches in its competitions could be played on approved artificial turf from the 2005/06 season.

In the new millenium, UEFA kept pace with the rapid development of new communications outlets with the launching in 2001 of a new subsidiary company dealing with new communications, UEFA New Media – eventually to be renamed UEFA Media Technologies SA – and the establishing of UEFA.com, viewed by many as the most comprehensive football website in the world.

Lennart Johansson, who oversaw the body’s development as UEFA president from 1990 into the new millennium, explained UEFA’s philosophy at the time: “It is quite normal for UEFA as a whole to endow itself with modern organisational structures able to respond to current and future [market] demands. It is indeed only with expertise, efficiency and modern successful management at all levels that UEFA can continue to promote and further develop the duality of solidarity and commercialisation for the good of football.”

 

From: http://www.uefa.com/uefa/aboutuefa/organisation/history/chapter=4/index.html

1978-2000: Ongoing change

In the 1990s and new millenium, European football experienced explosive growth and development. Aspects such as television, business and finance, marketing, sponsorship and global communication changed the face of the game, and political upheavals altered the map of Europe.

Once again, UEFA was able to stay in tune with the times, and initiated or was involved in a variety of innovative measures in all sectors of the sport. The UEFA figureheads during this hectic period were president Lennart Johansson (Sweden), who was elected to office in 1990, and Gerhard Aigner (Germany), who succeeded Hans Bangerter (Switzerland) as general secretary in 1989 before being renamed chief executive under UEFA’s programme to herald the new millennium. Mr Aigner retired in December 2003 to be replaced by Lars-Christer Olsson (Sweden) for UEFA’s Jubilee year in 2004.

For the first time, sixteen teams took part in a UEFA European Championship final round in England in 1996, and the competition now ranks alongside the FIFA World Cup and Olympic Games as a global sporting spectacle. On the club competition front, UEFA made wholesale changes to the European Champion Clubs’ Cup from 1992 onwards. The competition became the UEFA Champions League, and is arguably the most prestigious club event in the world, with extraordinary commercial appeal.

In another important move to adapt its club competitions to changing circumstances on the European football scene, the decision was taken in 1999 to abolish the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup competition, and to expand the UEFA Cup. From 2004/05, the latter competition featured a group phase, as well as knockout rounds, and further adjustments are being made for the future to enhance the competition’s image. Both the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Cup – from 2009, renamed the UEFA Europa League – proved to be powerful commercial and sporting entities which not only generate revenue for European football’s well-being, but also captivate football enthusiasts, as they feature many of the world’s top stars playing for some of the most famous clubs on the globe.

By the start of the 1980s, the International Youth Tournament had mutated into separate European competitions for Under-18 and Under-16 teams. They are now a permanent fixture in the UEFA calendar – featuring the stars of the future – and the 2001/02 season saw these two competitions become Under-17 and Under-19 championships, in accordance with FIFA’s measure to amend the qualifying date for players’ eligibility. The women’s game also forged its own identity – 1982 saw the inaugural European women’s competition, which evolved into a European championship by 1989 – and the inaugural European women’s club competition was launched in 2001/02. European national-team and club competitions for Futsal players were also introduced in the latter period.

New countries emerged in eastern Europe from the start of the 1990s, bringing the birth of new associations, national and club teams, and this in turn led to the expansion in size of the various UEFA competitions. Such constant expansion was reflected in the continued regular introduction of new competitions (the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 1995, a women’s Under-18 championship in 1997/98, and the UEFA Regions’ Cup for amateur footballers in 1999). As football became more commercially-driven, UEFA continued to give vital emphasis to reinvesting the funds generated by its activities back into the game at all levels.

Away from the competition scene, UEFA was no less active. It was at the forefront of moves to improve safety and security at football matches in the wake of the Heysel Stadium disaster in Belgium in 1985, with stringent security requirements and provisions for all-seated spectators put into place at UEFA matches. By doing this, UEFA made a key contribution in the development of modern, multi-purpose venues in which fans can watch football matches in total comfort and safety.
Sportsmanlike conduct on and off the field became a focal point thanks to UEFA’s various Fair Play campaigns. Close links were forged with other football continents, in particular with Africa through the Meridian Project in the late 1990s, and UEFA used its resources to give assistance not only to the less fortunate in football terms, but also to those in need, as a contribution to humanitarian and social actions.

During the 1990s, the integration process within western Europe brought about the intensification of contacts between UEFA and the European Union on a host of matters, including cross-border television broadcasts. The Bosman ruling by the European Court of Justice in 1995 obliged UEFA (and European football as a whole) to make wide-ranging changes to regulations and policies on international transfers, as well as on the fielding by clubs of foreign players. In 2001, following intensive negotiations, UEFA and FIFA joined forces to reach agreement with the European political authorities on a mutually-accepted international transfer system which was aimed at stabilising player/club relations, particularly from a contractual point of view, and protecting the smaller clubs, many of whom discover, train and develop the superstars of today and tomorrow.

By the year 2000, UEFA had become a markedly different organisation to the one which first saw the light of day half a century ago. The body was now a vibrant hive of activity with its own corporate identity and image, fully in keeping with the demands of the business world of the new millennium.

1962-1978: Years of development

UEFA’s initial hesitant steps as a parent body for European football were followed by expansion during the late 1950s and early 1960s. At first, the Executive Committee was UEFA’s sole decision-making authority, but additional expert committees were gradually introduced to deal with the various aspects of the game, and the young body’s range of activities continued to grow. The figureheads of the organisation during this period of expansion were president Ebbe Schwartz, until April 1962, when he was succeeded by Gustav Wiederkehr (Switzerland). On 1 April 1960, Hans Bangerter (Switzerland) succeeded Pierre Delaunay (France) as general secretary – a position he was to hold for nearly three decades.

At the same time as UEFA’s activities were growing, the number of competitions increased. The UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup (then titled European Cup Winners’ Cup), open to domestic cup winners, was staged for the first time in 1960/61, and the inaugural European/South American Cup, contested by the winners of the champion clubs’ competitions on the two continents, took place in 1960.

UEFA’s duties and role developed further as the 1960s wore on. In addition to the formation of even more expert committees (for example, the Technical Committee in 1963 and the Referees’ Committee in 1968), UEFA diversified as it gained in stature, promoting constant dialogue and a continual search for improvement within the European game. Regular instruction courses for coaches and referees were introduced, as well as conferences for general secretaries and presidents of the national associations.

The European Nations’ Cup was given the grander title of the European Football Championship in time for the 1968 final round. Considerable emphasis was placed on the development of young footballers, and a national-team competition for players under the age of 23 was launched. As UEFA’s finances stabilised with the passing years, the organisation began granting subsidies (to cover tournament and course organisation costs, travel expenses, etc.). The media began exerting greater influence, and more comprehensive agreements with the media and broadcasting organisations became essential, in particular with respect to the regulation of television transmissions of football matches.

By the 1970s, football was enjoying tremendous mass public appeal, and UEFA kept pace with developments. The old Inter-Cities’ Fairs Cup came under UEFA’s full control and was renamed the UEFA Cup in 1971. The UEFA Super Cup, involving the winners of the European Champion Clubs’ Cup and UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, came into being in 1973. Three years later, a European competition for Under-21 players replaced the Under-23 competition and in 1977, the number of participants in the European Championship final round doubled from four to eight teams (for the 1980 final round in Italy).

A multitude of other important decisions were taken on the administrative side. Binding recommendations were issued on the maintenance of order in stadiums (1976); the legal bodies (Control and Disciplinary Committee and Board of Appeal) were separated from the rest of UEFA’s administrative machinery and guaranteed independent status (1972); standard regulations were adopted for all UEFA club competitions (1972); and subsidies were paid for the first time to clubs suffering deficits after early elimination in the club competitions (1971).

UEFA president Gustav Wiederkehr died suddenly on 7 July 1972. His successor from 15 March 173 was Artemio Franchi (Italy).

From:http://www.uefa.com/uefa/aboutuefa/organisation/history/chapter=2/index.html

1954-1962: Birth of UEFA

The Union des Associations Européennes de Football (UEFA) was founded in Basle (Switzerland) on 15 June 1954, bringing to fruition the pioneering vision of a handful of key football administrators of the time. Since then, the parent body of European football – one of six continental confederations of world football’s governing body FIFA – has grown into the cornerstone of the game on this continent, working with and acting on behalf of Europe’s national football associations and other stakeholders in the game to promote football and strengthen its position as arguably the most popular sport in the world.

The guiding principle of the initiators in the early 1950s was the fostering and development of unity and solidarity among the European football community. Now, over 50 years later, UEFA’s mission remains very much the same. But it has also become the ‘guardian’ of football in Europe, protecting and nurturing the well-being of the sport at all levels, from the elite and its stars to the thousands who play the game as a hobby. In 1960, UEFA had a full-time staff of just three people. That figure has risen steadily through the years as the organisation has reacted to changing circumstances. Today, 330 permanent staff members and 100 staff members on fixed-term contracts, representing nearly 40 different nationalities – administrators, secretaries, IT specialists, coaches, journalists, translators – are employed at UEFA’s administrative ‘nerve centre’ located in the town of Nyon, on the shores of Lake Geneva in western Switzerland.

Over the decades, UEFA has developed from a mainly administrative body into a pro-active and dynamic organisation that is in tune with the vast requirements of modern-day football. UEFA is a sporting authority which does not have the powers of a government; it represents Europe’s national football associations, and acts in accordance with the wishes of these associations. When UEFA was founded, the body comprised 25 national associations. The number of member associations rose gradually until the beginning of the 1990s, when political developments in eastern Europe and the fragmentation of the USSR led to a rapid growth in the number of new associations. Consequently, there are now 53 associations under UEFA’s wing, and UEFA’s constant objective is to seek a consensus among its members.

The period leading up to the 1954 FIFA World Cup final round in Switzerland, when the world body FIFA celebrated its 50th birthday, was a crucial stage in moves towards the foundation of an umbrella body for European football. In the early 1950s, a number of visionary football administrators, including the former Italian Football Federation secretary and president, Dr Ottorino Barassi, and his counterparts within the French and Belgian FAs, Henri Delaunay and José Crahay, pursued the idea of forming a united European block. The three men held a first round of talks in Zurich in May 1952, and informal discussions took place in Paris (1952) and Helsinki (1953). However, the movement in support of a body bringing together the European national football associations gathered real pace after FIFA had approved the statutory basis for the creation of continental football confederations at its Extraordinary Congress in Paris in 1953.

It was clear in the early 1950s that continental authorities, rather than just one central worldwide body, were needed to supervise and direct football’s constant growth. Various discussions and proposals behind the scenes finally culminated in the calling of an official meeting for 15 June 1954 in Basle, and the official founding of UEFA. The body’s first statutes were approved at the inaugural UEFA Congress in Vienna on 2 March 1955. From then on, UEFA was at the vanguard of every decisive step forward in European football, both on and off the field. The early UEFA figureheads were Ebbe Schwartz (Denmark), who became president on 22 June 1954, and Henri Delaunay, who was UEFA’s first general secretary from the official founding meeting on 15 June 1954 until 9 November 1955, when he was succeeded by his son Pierre Delaunay (France), first on an interim basis, and then officially from 8 June 1956.

The European Champion Clubs’ Cup, Europe’s flagship club event featuring the continent’s domestic champion clubs, was founded in April 1955; the Inter-Cities’ Fairs Cup (the forerunner of the UEFA Cup and, from 2009, the UEFA Europa League) was founded later that month, and a new European competition for senior national representative teams, the European Nations’ Cup, got under way in 1958 after two years of groundwork. UEFA also took over responsibility from FIFA in 1956 for staging the popular International Youth Tournament, an event which had been staged since 1948.

 

From: http://www.uefa.com/uefa/aboutuefa/organisation/history/chapter=1/index.html

UEFA Overview

The Union des Associations Européennes de Football (UEFA) was founded in Basle, Switzerland, on 15 June 1954, bringing to fruition the pioneering vision of a handful of key football administrators of the time.

Since then, the parent body of European football – one of six continental confederations of world football’s governing body FIFA – has grown into the cornerstone of the game on this continent, working with and acting on behalf of Europe’s national football associations and other stakeholders in the game to promote football and strengthen its position as arguably the most popular sport in the world.

The guiding principle of the initiators in the early 1950s was the fostering and development of unity and solidarity among the European football community. Now, over 50 years later, UEFA’s mission remains very much the same. But it has also become the ‘guardian’ of football in Europe, protecting and nurturing the well-being of the sport at all levels, from the elite and its stars to the thousands who play the game as a hobby.

In 1960, UEFA had a full-time staff of just three people. That figure has risen steadily through the years as the organisation has reacted to changing circumstances. Today, over 340 people of more than 29 different nationalities – administrators, secretaries, IT specialists, coaches, journalists, translators – are employed at UEFA’s administrative HQ located in the town of Nyon, on the shores of Lake Geneva in western Switzerland.

Over the decades, UEFA has developed from a mainly administrative body into a dynamic organisation that is in tune with the vast requirements of modern-day football. UEFA is a sporting authority which does not have the powers of a government; it represents Europe’s national football associations, and can only act in accordance with the wishes of these associations.

When UEFA was founded, the body comprised 25 national associations. The number of member associations rose gradually until the beginning of the 1990s, when political developments in eastern Europe and the fragmentation of the USSR led to a rapid growth in the number of new associations. Consequently, there are now 53 associations under UEFA’s wing.

From: http://www.uefa.com/uefa/aboutuefa/organisation/history/index.html

Munich 2012 final visual identity unveiled

UEFA has today unveiled the new visual identity created specially for the UEFA Champions League Final Munich 2012. The final will take place at the Fußball Arena München on Saturday 19 May.

The final of the 2012 UEFA Champions League in Munich has been given a personality of its own with a complete design concept developed specially for the event. The design and logo will provide the 2012 final with a unique identity that will be applied across a wide range of promotional applications, with the objective to help promote the final and enhance the prestige of one of the world’s biggest sporting events. The 2011 final between FC Barcelona and Manchester United FC at Wembley was indeed watched by a global average audience of 179 million viewers worldwide.

The design concept created by The Works agency in Leeds is based on an amalgamation of style and energy derived from the German Expressionist movement and a diverse array of modern architecture based around the city of Munich. Blue and aqua tones in the design have been taken from strong influences of the reflection of modern architectural materials such as glass and metal.

The construction of the design adopts the diamond shape of the impressive stadium as its foundation whilst reflecting key moments of the tournament, paired with the iconic UEFA Champions League trophy designed in a style which creates a feeling of ultimate pride, quality and achievement associated with the UEFA Champions League final.

The initial idea that led to the creation of a new identity for each final was to develop a specific design with a distinctive flavour of the host city.

 

From: http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=1715843.html