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Euro 2024, Europe's football extravaganza, took place this year in Germany, where 24 European nations participated.
The tournament spanned 10 German cities, but its financial backbone came from a distant source, approximately 7,500 kilometers (4660.2 miles) away: China.
This year marked a historic milestone as five out of the thirteen tournament sponsors hailed from China, signaling a significant shift in sponsorship dynamics.
Leading the sponsorship charge were prominent Chinese firms including Hisense, a manufacturer of home appliances and electronics; Alibaba, a global e-commerce platform and its financial technology arm AliPay; Vivo, a smartphone manufacturer; and BYD, an electric vehicle producer.
Chinese companies entered European football sponsorship in 2016, replacing traditional European giants, starting with Hisense from Shandong Province's Qingdao City.
This year, Vivo and AliPay joined in, expanding the presence of Chinese brands in the European football arena. Notably, BYD, a Chinese automaker, became the official automotive partner of Euro 2024, marking the first-ever partnership between UEFA and a Chinese automaker in the tournament's history.
The interest shown by Chinese firms in European football has been reflected in tangible outcomes back home. During the tournament's opening weekend, British automotive marketplace Auto Trader reported a 69% increase in views of BYD models, totaling 26,000 views.
AliExpress, the tournament's first e-commerce sponsor, witnessed an 80% surge in football-related product sales in May compared to the previous year, with Spain and France leading in sales.
Furthermore, shipments from China to Europe saw a volume increase of over 300% during this period.
BYD, which announced investments in Türkiye, is expanding its European footprint. Since entering the European passenger vehicle market in 2022, the company has established a network of 230 stores across 19 countries.
The company has also introduced five models and is preparing for the European launch of its sub-brand Denza.
Sponsor Companies
Product/Field
Year of Participation
Notes
Hisense
Home Appliances and Electronics
2016
First Chinese sponsor to enter European football
Alibaba (AliPay)
Global E-commerce and Financial Technology
2024
First time sponsoring Euro 2024
Vivo
Smartphone Manufacturing
2024
New addition among the sponsor companies
BYD
Electric Vehicle Manufacturing
2024
Official automotive partner of Euro 2024, replacing Volkswagen
While Germany's exact expenditure for hosting Euro 2024 has not been disclosed, UEFA announced a total cost of $703.6 million (€645.5 million) for organizing the event, encompassing everything from stadium rentals to staffing and transportation.
The tournament sold 2.7 million tickets, contributing 26.8% of the total estimated revenue from ticket sales and broadcasting.
Considering additional revenues from hotels, restaurants, transportation, and other sectors, Germany reaped hundreds of millions of euros in economic gains.
According to the IFO Economic Research Institute, Euro 2024 is expected to boost Germany's economic growth by 0.1%. Projections suggest the event will generate $1.09 billion (€1 billion) through guest fans alone.
Approximately 600,000 additional international tourists visited Germany for the tournament, resulting in 1.5 million extra overnight stays throughout its duration.
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