Glasgow and Berlin will co-host the inaugural European Championships in August 2018, bringing together the existing championships of seven of Europe’s leading sports into one coordinated, exciting multi-sport event.
Aquatics, cycling, gymnastics, golf, rowing and triathlon will be held in Scotland, with the German capital hosting the athletics.
The 2018 European Championships Board has finalised the sports programme for the inaugural multisport event in Glasgow and Berlin.
The seven European Sports Federations, along with co-hosts Glasgow and Berlin and the European Broadcasting Union (Broadcast Partner), have agreed on a sports competition schedule that will run through Thursday 2 August to Sunday 12 August 2018 with 10 days of television coverage starting Friday 3 August.
The European Championships is a major new multi-sport event taking place every four years fully supported by Europe’s free-to-air broadcasters, which aggregates the existing senior continental championships of Athletics (European Athletics), Aquatics (LEN), Cycling (UEC), Gymnastics (UEG), Rowing (FISA), Triathlon (ETU), with a new Golf Team Championships (ET & LET) – all unified under a common brand.
European Athletics President Svein Arne Hansen, co-chair of the European Championships Board, said: “The European Sports Federation members of the 2018 Board are fully supportive of having an overall programme that will deliver a schedule packed with exciting finals and gold-medal moments for television. We all believe in the power of aggregation and the benefits for our sports that come from bringing our championships together in this exciting new event.”
Fellow co-chair Paolo Barelli, President of the Ligue Européenne de Natation (European Aquatics), said, “The sports programme in Glasgow will start with a number of qualifying rounds on Thursday 2 August before a packed weekend of sport on television starting on Friday 3 August. This optimised 10-day television program will create a fantastic viewing experience with audiences able to follow finals in multiple sports across the day and evening, with great storytelling opportunities for broadcasters. Indeed, it will intensify even further the power of aggregation that this European Championships provides.”
Stefan Kuerten, Director of Eurovision Services and Sports Rights, said: “We are very happy with this exciting 10-day television schedule for the 2018 European Championships. In a multi-sport event, you can choose between the different sports and the opportunity to follow your national athletes across a variety of sport. Television and radio channels will be able to switch from one highly attractive sport to another without interrupting their program and digital platforms will propose a large choice of content which will accommodate all viewers. Furthermore, it creates a close synergy between Glasgow and Berlin, with broadcasters able to crisscross between events in both cities as they follow their respective national medal hopes.”
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
1. The 2018 European Championships will be staged by the European Sports Federations and the Host Cities of Glasgow and Berlin.
2. The Glasgow 2018 sports programme will start with a day of qualifications on Thursday 2nd August and will run until Sunday 12th August, while the Berlin 2018 European Athletics Championships will be between Tuesday 7th August and Sunday 12th August.
3. The European Broadcast Union (EBU), the umbrella body for Europe free-to-air channels, will be the broadcast partner for the Championships. It plans on a 10-day television programme through Friday 3 August to Sunday 12 August 2018.
4. The event is expected to generate a television audience of around 1.03 billion with many more viewers across multiple digital platforms. There will be a projected 250 hours of host broadcaster coverage, and an anticipated 2,700 hours of television coverage.
5. The EBU has already confirmed coverage of the inaugural championships across the top five markets for 2018, with BBC in the United Kingdom, ARD/ZDF in Germany, France Televisions in France, RAI in Italy and TVE in Spain. In total, over 35 EBU members have now signed up to show the first edition in August 2018.
6. Around 3,025 athletes will travel to Scotland as part of a total delegation of around 8,500 including officials, media and others. A further 1,500 athletes will compete in Berlin.
7. Berlin’s Olympic Stadium will be the venue for the European Athletics Championships with the road races and race walking events held throughout the city.
8. The European Aquatics Championships will take place at Glasgow’s Tollcross International Swimming Centre, with diving at Edinburgh’s Royal Commonwealth Pool, synchronized swimming at the Scotstoun Sports Campus, and open water swimming at Loch Lomond.
9. Four European Cycling Championships will be staged in Glasgow. Track, Road, Mountain Bike and BMX will attract 650 of Europe’s top names to the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, the Cathkin Braes Mountain Bike Trails, the streets of Glasgow and a new world championship and Olympic standard BMX track to be built in the Knightswood area of the city.
10. The European Golf Team Championships will take place at the Gleneagles PGA Centenary Course.
11. The European Artistic Gymnastics Men’s and Women’s Championships will be staged at The SSE Hydro, the venue for the 2015 FIG World Gymnastics Championships.
12. The European Championships for both Rowing and Triathlon will both be staged at Strathclyde Country Park in North Lanarkshire.
