UEFA Euro 2016

THE UEFA EURO 2016 IN FRANCE

The UEFA European Football Championship is classed as the 3rd sportive event in the world due to its media coverage. The Euro 2016 will be the first tournament to feature 24 teams, expanded from the current 16.

12 host cities will welcome the football teams of 24 European nations and their supporters in France: Saint-Denis, Paris, Marseille, Lens, Strasbourg, Nancy, Lyon, Lille, Bordeaux and Nice (Saint-Etienne and Toulouse have been chosen as back-ups).

On the 28th May 2010, France was selected as host nation of the UEFA European Football Championship (the ‘Euro 2016) to be held in the summer of 2016.

La Coupe de l’UEFA en 2016 en France

About football in France

The host cities will benefit from the organisation of the Euro 2016 by providing them with first-class stadiums for their professional clubs.

Football is arguably the most popular sport in France, and the matches of its professional clubs are amongst the most watched events on television.

The FFF (Fédération Française de Football) is the French federation of soccer clubs in France, and has a total of more than 2 million members, 40 professional clubs, and over 17,700 amateur clubs.

The first football club in France was formed in 1872 in Le Havre, Normandy. In 1904, the first match of the French football team took place in Brussels against the Belgian team and the score was 3-3.

The FFF was founded in 1919 and from then, France became a traditional hosting nation for the FIFA World Cup (1938, 1998) and the UEFA Football Championship (1960, 2016).

France won the Euro Championship in 1984 and 2000, and the World Cup in 1998 for the first time.

A tour of the French hosting cities of the Euro 2016

Famous for its wine bearing the same name, the city of Bordeaux is located in Southwest France and has a huge historic heritage as a major harbour for transatlantic trade. The capital of Aquitaine is one of the largest cities of France with over 800,000 inhabitants.

Bordeaux is classified as a "City of Art and History”, and its old district “Port de la Lune” has been listed by UNESCO as World Heritage since June 2007 for its outstanding urban and architectural ensemble of the 18th century.

Must-see landmarks in Bordeaux include the Cathedral St André, the 1812 Pont de Pierre spanning over the Garonne River, the Grand Théâtre, the Palais Rohan, and the various medieval gates (Porte Cailhau, Grosse Cloche). The 18th century Place de la Bourse is remarkable with its classical architecture.

The Rue Sainte Catherine, 1.2 km long is Europe’s largest pedestrian shopping street, while the Place des Quinconces is Europe’s widest square with its 12 ha.

Benefiting from a warm climate, Bordeaux has become over the years a great place to visit close to the Atlantic ocean beaches!

Tourist Office of Bordeaux: www.bordeaux-tourisme.com

Bordeaux

With only 35,500 inhabitants living within the boundaries of the “commune”, Lens has grown up to become an influential city in France, with its football team (the Racing Club de Lens) and the new branch of the Louvre museum, planned to open in 2012. With its suburbs, Lens totalises more than 300,000 inhabitants, a respectable size in Northern France.

In 1659, the French King took possession of Lens from the Spanish Netherlands. But the destiny of the little town would be changed forever in 1849 when coal was discovered in Lens. The city and its surroundings became an important industrial centre.

Just a few kilometres away from Lens, stands the Canadian National Memorial of Vimy dedicated to Canada’s soldiers who were killed during the First World War.

Tourist Office of Lens-Liévin: http://www.tourisme-lenslievin.fr/

Lens

At the crossroads of Paris, London and Brussels, Lille cannot be ignored. The 4th largest city of France (1,1 million inhabitants) is located at a stone’s throw from Belgium.

As for Lens, the capital of Nord-Pas-de-Calais region went through a season of crisis once the coal mining industries stopped in the 1960s.

But the renewal of the city was carefully planned and in 2004, Lille was consecrated as “City of Art and History” and became for one year the European Capital of Culture. The Vieux-Lille (Old Lille) has magnificently been restored over the last decade.

Cultural life in Lille is intense thanks to a population of 100,000 students. One of the biggest events is the Grande Braderie de Lille, which takes place in the beginning of September. This flea market is the largest organised in France.

Tourist Office of Lille: http://www.tourisme-lenslievin.fr/

Lille

Conveniently located at the convergence of two navigable rivers: the Saône and the Rhône, Lyon is France’s second largest city and former capital of Gaul (Lugdunum). Many adjectives could describe Lyon. As the French capital of gastronomy, Lyon has maintained a reputation of fine food cuisine thanks to its “bouchons”, the little restaurants that are found in its old town centre. Known as the silk capital of the world, Lyon built its influence in Europe by its fairs, hence becoming the site of an important financial market under the Renaissance. Today, Lyon’s prosperity is provided by industries specialising in chemicals, pharmaceutics, and biotechnology.

Many travellers on their journey from Northern Europe to the Mediterranean beaches pass through Lyon – and its dreadful tunnel of Fourvière – without realising that the heritage of the city’s centre is worth a stopover. Lyon’s old town has been listed as World Heritage by UNESCO since 1998. From the Roman ruins of Fourvière to the Vieux-Lyon and its narrow lanes, Lyon is a surprising town something between a French provincial city and Paris!

The Lyon professional football team (OL - Olympique Lyonnais) has gained respect over the years through its participation in national and European football championships.

Tourist Office of Lyon: http://www.lyon-france.com/

Lyon

Marseille is considered as one of France’s oldest city as it was founded by the Greeks under the name of Massalia. Its urban area is the third largest of France after Paris and Lyon. Capital of the Provence region, Marseille is also the largest commercial port of the country.

Marseille will become the European Capital of Culture in 2013.

Marseille’s main sights are the Vieux-Port, the cathedral Sainte-Marie Majeure, the famous street of the Canebière and the 19th century basilica Notre-Dame de la Garde, on top of a hill dominating the whole town. To the East lies a wild mountainous coastal area of outstanding natural beauty called the Calanques,.

Marseille’s gastronomy is worldly famous through its bouillabaisse dish.

It is not possible to talk about Marseille without mentioning its football team, the OM (Olympique de Marseille). Famous soccer players have played for the OM: Jean-Pierre Papin, Didier Deschamps. Zinedine Zidane, although he never played for the OM is actually a native of Marseille.

Tourist Office of Marseille: http://www.marseille-tourisme.com/

Marseille

In southeast France, Nice is the second largest city of Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region after Marseille. The city is located 30 km away from the Italian borders, and stretches across the coast of the Mediterranean, along the Baie des Anges (Angels Bay).

Located between the sea and the Maritime Alps, Nice enjoys an enviable position and tourism is a strategic industry in the local economy.

From Cannes to Menton, the urban area of Nice totals nearly 1 million inhabitants, to which are added 4 million visitors who come each year.

The most famous street of Nice is called “La Promenade des Anglais” which takes its name from the English aristocrats who used to relax there in winter during the 18th and 19th centuries. Its old town has remained almost intact and has a definite Italian atmosphere.

Nice and its surroundings used to belong to the count of Provence before uniting with the House of Savoie in 1388. Nice only became French in 1860.

Tourist Office of Nice: http://www.nicetourisme.com/

Nice

The historic capital of Lorraine has been listed as World Heritage by UNESCO in 1983 for its three 18th century squares: Place Stanislas, Place de la Carrière and Place de l’Alliance.

Its old town includes interesting monuments such as the Porte de la Craffe, the Palais Ducal and the Eglise Saint Epvre.

The School of Nancy (Emile Gallé, Louis Majorelle, Victor Prouvé, Antonin Daum and Eugène Vallin) was an Art Nouveau movement founded in 1901.

The AS Nancy-Lorraine was particularly famous in the late 1970s when Michel Platini was the captain of the football team.

Click here to visit our Nancy homepage.

Tourist Office of Nancy: http://www.ot-nancy.fr/

Nancy

“J’ai deux amours : mon pays et Paris” Josephine Baker used to sing. The chorus has remained true for many visitors, French provincials or foreigners alike. Paris has something magical in the air that makes us all feel at home. Maybe this feeling is due to the sight of the Eiffel Tower, probably one of the most famous shapes in the world thanks to all the movies, cartoons, photos and pictures...

But to live in Paris for a longer period of time will give a different experience. That’s what the Parisian saying: “Métro, boulot, dodo” (taking the métro, going to work, coming back home only to go to sleep) is all about. Yes, living in Paris could lead to a rat race, like in any large city. But for many expats and foreign students who live and work in Paris, the French capital will remain an exquisite, fascinating, and moving place that is well worth experiencing.

Click here to our Paris homepage.

Tourist Office of Paris: http://www.parisinfo.com/

Paris

10 km North of Paris is Saint-Denis, traditionally known for its magnificent cathedral, the Saint-Denis basilica, where the kings and queens of France were buried.

Until the end of the 1990s, Saint-Denis had a rather low reputation as being one of the most heavily industrialised areas in France. But the 1998 FIFA World Cup changed this with the construction of the grand and modern Stade de France.

The Stade de France is the national stadium of France, and has a total capacity of 81,338 seats. The stadium has welcomed several large-scale sporting events (1998 FIFA World Cup, 2003 World Championships in Athletics, and the 2007 Rugby World Cup) as well as music concerts (Madonna, The Rolling Stones, Céline Dion, Johnny Hallyday, U2 or André Rieu).

Tourist Office of Saint-Denis: http://www.saint-denis-tourisme.com/

Saint-Denis

Saint-Étienne is a city in the Massif Central, 60km southwest of Lyon. It is the second largest European town to be at a high altitude (176,000 inhabitants at 517 metres).

The city was named after Saint Stephen. Its origins date back from the 16th century as a place of munition factories. Its expansion started in the 19th century when it became a major coal mining centre with factories, warehouses and chimneys. Today, Saint-Etienne is known as the capital of the French bicycle industry and the Tour de France often passes through the city.

Although Saint-Etienne is not considered as a tourist town, its centre has been renovated and appears quite cheerful with tramways, little museums and cafés.

Saint-Etienne’s football team has won the national championships several times.

Tourist Office of Saint-Etienne: http://www.tourisme-st-etienne.com/

Saint-Etienne

Strasbourg (Strassburg or Straßburg in German), is the capital of Alsace and is located on the left bank of the Rhine river, in France’s northeast. With a population of more than 470,000, it is one of the only cities (along with Geneva and New York) to be selected as the seat of international organisations without actually being a capital city. The European Parliament, the Court of Human Rights, and the Council of Europe are just some of the famous institutions that have chosen Strasbourg as their seat.

Its Old Town district is a gem waiting to be discovered, and the atmosphere surrounding it is truly enchanting. The listing by UNESCO of this historic centre as a World Heritage Site in 1988 topped off the success of this bicultural city with its Germanic accents. The heritage-listed area includes the famous Notre Dame cathedral and the enchanting Petite France district.

Click here to our Strasbourg homepage.

Tourist Office of Strasbourg: http://www.otstrasbourg.fr/

Strasbourg

Toulouse is located in southwest France on the River Garonne, half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.

One of the largest cities of France, Toulouse enjoys great popularity amongst the French whom have nicknamed it “la ville rose” (the Pink City) because of the colour of the roof tiles and brickwork.

Toulouse is a vibrant city and its beautiful historic centre features several main sights: the Capitole (18th century) and its square, the Banks of the Garonne, the Pont Neuf (16th century), the copper dome of the 18th Hôpital de la Grave, Saint Sernin basilica, as well as many beautiful mansions.

The headquarters of the European aerospace industry, with those of Airbus are located in Toulouse, hence contributing to the international renown of the city.

Welcoming 100,000 students, the Toulouse University was founded in 1229 and is one of the oldest in Europe.

Toulouse hosted some of the matches during the 2007 Rugby World Cup and was recently selected as one of the 12 cities to welcome the Euro 2016.

Tourist Office of Toulouse: http://www.toulouse-tourisme.com/

Toulouse