EURO 2024
EM mascots: Albärt, Bärnardo or Herzi von Bär
Philipp Lahm and the official mascot of the EM 2024. Photo
© Federico Gambarini/dpa
No more football tournament without a mascot. On Tuesday, UEFA presented its symbolic figure for the EM 2024 in Germany. The name has not yet been decided.
A cute little bear – with pants. The European Football Union UEFA has presented the mascot for the EM 2024 in Germany.
“The mascot pays tribute to the popular teddy bear, which is believed to have been born in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century,” said the umbrella organization. According to the association, the symbolic figure appeared as a surprise guest in a primary school in Gelsenkirchen. In the afternoon (2 p.m.) the mascot will be officially presented.
At the home World Cup in 2006, the mascot was a full-grown (plush) lion, called Goleo, and he wasn’t wearing any pants, which had been a topic of conversation for weeks. Goleo had a talking soccer ball called Pille.
Children decide on names
Over the next two weeks, children from the UEFA school football program and all fans can vote for the name of the 2024 mascot. You can choose from: Albärt, Bärnardo, Bärnheart and Herzi von Bär.
The Bundesliga clubs also quickly got involved in the name search. The German runner-up Borussia Dortmund suggested “Teddy de Bär” on Twitter – alluding to the former BVB keeper Teddy de Beer. Bayer Leverkusen countered with “Dimitar Bärbatov”, “Karim Bärllarabi” and “Sergej Bärbarez”. There were also other more or less creative suggestions under the hashtag #Bärenfussballer.
“As a father, I know how important it is to encourage children’s imaginations. We hope that with our mascot we have created a funny and lovable character who teaches children how to play football,” said tournament director Philipp Lahm.
“Especially in today’s digital world, it’s important to meet kids where they spend a lot of their time and give them real value. And that’s what football is all about – it’s about movement and the excitement of being on it To stand, to team spirit and cohesion in the team.”