CelebrateFootball is a hashtag that is taking social media by storm, and football lovers all around the world are using it to express their love for the sport and their respect of the players, especially as the UEFA EURO 2016 looms in the horizon. Fans everywhere are jumping on board and using the hashtag to organize their enthusiastic posts about the fascinating world of football and all of its various aspects. It was originally a campaign started by the UEFA in order to promote the values of football around the world on social media sites like Twitter and instagram. These values include diversity, health, environment, fan culture, and stadium access for everyone, and it’s certainly something that most football fans can get behind.
It was launched by the UEFA just before the EURO 2016 in France began, and it has already seen extensive use throughout all levels of social media. By launching this CelebrateFootball campaign, the UEFA hoped to bring more attention to the game and to bring a stronger focus on the positive aspects of playing and watching football, whether in the stadium itself or at home cheering for ones favorite team. The announcement of the social media campaign was made by the leader of the referees of UEFA and the midfielder for France’s team. The head ref indicated that this tournament was a great chance to bring people of all kinds together to experience football and revel in the passion of this game that is loved around the world. He stressed particularly that football could not thrive if it was not built on a foundation of respect.
There is also a small promotional ad that will be broadcast during all of the championship games and viewed my millions of football fans, in order to spread the word of the new CelebrateFootball campaign. The campaign will also not be limited to social media, but this hashtag will make an appearance on the signs and screens in stadiums in order to continue to push this message even while the fans are absorbed in the game.
The UEFA hopes that this CelebrateFootball promotional campaign will be well received by fans on social media, especially during the finals of the championship, when these sorts of values need to be espoused most urgently. Another more playful campaign that the UEFA has been experimenting with is one that attempts to get people on social media to record themselves doing the wave. In this way, they hope to connect fans across the globe in one giant, singular wave.
All in all, the CelebrateFootball campaign already seems to be having a positive effect, as even those who don’t particularly speak English have been using the hashtag to post videos and other material related to the beloved game. The hope is that focusing on the good of football will help remind people to be respectful of other fans in spite of their divisions and to see the world as one united place where everyone can celebrate their love of football together.
#CelebrateFootball
