Tag Archives: Euro 2012

Jul1

Euro 2012 capitals: Kyiv

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Eviva España! That’s the cheer to which the world is celebrating today after the final game of the Euro 2012 in which Spain destroyed Italy 4:0 – the biggest margin ever in the history of European Championship finals. The international feast of football that started in Warsaw on June 8 ends today in Kyiv with a great game and I only wish I could have been there! I’ve traveled to Kyiv twice before – once in March, once October – and unfortunately both times I didn’t see much sun, which is a clear indication I should go back the third time, but maybe around this time of year =) Still, regardless of the weather, there are places in Kyiv I always want to go back to. And now, thanks to the Euro games, hopefully many of the fans who visited Ukraine will also want to come back. Read the rest of this entry →

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Jun23

Euro 2012 capitals: Warsaw

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(Image: worldcupblog.org)

Let me start by saying that I’m really not a soccer fan. But Euro 2012 is as much about the game itself as about the location: it is the first time since the fall of communism that this prestigious European Championship is held in Eastern Europe, jointly hosted by Poland and Ukraine. Incidentally, UEFA Euro 1976 took place in Yugoslavia – a state that is no more – and the final game featured two countries that no longer exist: Czechoslovakia and West Germany. Sadly, by now both current host countries are out of the game, with Germany and Portugal qualified for the semi-finals against yet unknown rivals. But as I said this tournament has been about much more then sports. For Poland and Ukraine, it’s also about gaining a new space in the consciousness of fellow Europeans and soccer fans around the world as real places – places worth visiting, learning more about, and exploring. Read the rest of this entry →