James Leipnik, Chief of Communication at Canon Europe, Middle East and Africa, comments: “Football has produced some of the most defining and instantly recognisable sporting images of our age. Canon is proud of its long association with the sport and our role as Official Sponsor of UEFA EURO 2012™. We look forward to helping people in Poland and Ukraine and all over the world capture and celebrate yet more powerful footballing moments.”
All accredited professional sports photographers in attendance during the tournament will be wearing Canon-branded bibs. At all eight tournament stadiums, they will also be able to turn to teams from Canon Professional Services for vital camera and lens services and support.
Canon will once again be reaching out to football fans visiting the official Fan Zones in Poland and Ukraine throughout the tournament. Amongst other activities, fans in selected cities* will have the opportunity to have their photograph taken by Canon which they can then download and share with friends via a special Canon Europe ‘Fan Zone’ microsite.
Canon and UEFA will also be making exclusive behind-the-scene images available to fans throughout the final tournament via the dedicated Canon photo gallery on the UEFA EURO 2012™ website.
UEFA EURO 2012™ is expected to draw 1.4 million fans to the host countries during the tournament, and will be broadcast to over 200 global territories, reaching several billion TV viewers. The worldwide TV audience will see the Canon logo appear on screen every time a goal is scored throughout the tournament. TV viewers and fans within the stadiums will also see the Canon logo appear on perimeter advertising boards during every tournament match, and a Canon promotional video will feature regularly in every stadium.
Major winners of Canon’s pan-European ‘Power to Celebrate’ competition will be attending tournament matches as VIP guests. Thousands of football fans and Canon customers participating in the competition have also received prizes including match tickets and replica match footballs.
Canon is also providing UEFA with a range of imaging and printing solutions to help ensure the overall success of the tournament.
Canon’s role as official sponsor of UEFA EURO 2012™ continues its long history of supporting football, spanning over 30 years. An official sponsor of UEFA EURO 2004™ and UEFA EURO 2008™, Canon was also an official supplier of the UEFA Champions League™ from 1995 to 2000 and from 2004 to 2006. Recent football sponsorships include the Africa Cup of Nations in 2006 and 2008, the Russian Premier League from 2006 to 2011 and the Danone Nations Cup for 10-12 year olds from 2010 to the present. Canon has also previously sponsored the World Cup (1978-1998) and UEFA European Football Championship (1980-1996).
* Canon will be present in Fan Zones in all eight host cities for UEFA EURO 2012: Warsaw, Gdansk, Wroclaw and Poznan in Poland and Kiev, Donetsk, Kharkiv and Lviv in Ukraine. Canon’s fan photography will take place in Kiev and Warsaw.