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With just one more game to go – the Lionesses against Spain in the final – countless records have already been broken at UEFA Women's EURO 2025. To date, a cumulative attendance of 623,008 means that this edition has been the highest attended Women’s EUROs ever.

At half-time of the second semi-final between Germany and Spain, a special group of people were given a rousing ovation from the crowd, after the infotainment screen flashed up a message to thank the 2,500 volunteers who had supported the event.

Following our earlier blog from one of our own team volunteering, we bring you a second dispatch from three volunteers, and the volunteer manager who has guided the crew in Zurich: from recruitment, through to the end of Sunday’s public viewing in the city.

 

 

Katharina Wistel, Zürich volunteer manager

My main goal was to create a diverse volunteer community where everybody felt welcome

When Switzerland was awarded the Women's EUROs in 2023, and Zurich was appointed as one of the host cities, it was clear to me that I wanted to get involved. Zurich has been my home since 2011 and experiencing such an event in the city you live in, and that you love, is an amazing experience. Being directly involved in the organisation has brought that to a completely different level.

The volunteer management position allows me to combine my passions for football, volunteering and working with people. I started the position with a clear priority goal: to create a diverse volunteer community where everybody, irrespective of their gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, origin, nationality or ability, would feel comfortable, and welcome.

To achieve this, we invested a lot of time speaking with different communities who would not automatically hear about the tournament or be aware of the chance to be part of it.

Since day one, seeing how our community works together and how they have embraced being part of the event, it has been pure joy. As an example, I will never forget how one volunteer, who is living with a cognitive disability, who didn't know anything about the tournament before, told me that he is volunteering to promote women's football in his community and to support women's football. He felt that the women’s game is still marginalised, in the same way as people with learning disabilities often feel isolated. The women's football community has completely won him over as a new fan through his volunteering experience. I am positive this is just one of countless ‘legacies’ that this great tournament has brought to women's football in Switzerland.

 

Matthias Arioli 

Why I decided to become a EURO 2025 volunteer

Never in my wildest dreams could I have expected the overwhelmingly positive mood and enthusiasm that has accompanied the record-breaking UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 this month. It has truly been a ‘summer of dreams’ for Switzerland and women’s football. With my participation in the volunteer workforce, I made my own little contribution too.

So, why did I decide to submit my application to UEFA in the first place? As a father of two daughters, I have experienced first-hand the hardships for young girls to find a spot in a local club, or in a squad amongst equals. It seems to me that football has evolved in a specific bubble or sphere of thinking. It remains a kind of mystery to me why the organisation of, and infrastructure for, girls kicking a ball has lagged so far behind.

In the early 1980s, as a young man in his early twenties, I took the responsibility to create a basketball team for girls in the city of Chur – recruiting the players, setting-up regular practice and training sessions and organising matches with other regional teams. We just did it. We never engaged in discussions about whether girls playing basketball are comparable to, or even a different discipline or sport from, the one played by boys.

 

"As a father of two daughters, I have experienced first-hand the hardships for young girls to find a spot in a local club, or in a squad"

 

Having dedicated my sports activities to another ball game, my love for football was only aroused later in my lifetime, linked to the rising success of the Swiss football team in qualifying for the 1994 World Cup in the USA. Being part of this vibrant scene in local bars and partying in the streets after winning games left indelible memories. There is nothing comparable to the collective emotions created by football.

These emotions are refreshed on a bi-weekly basis as a regular spectator for my local team FC Zürich. The walk to the stadium, 90 minutes of continuous cheering and chanting, and a drink after the game are the fabric of the fever pitch. As Susanne Kübler, communications director of the Tonhalle Orchestra, wrote in ‘Singing in the Stands’, football stadiums are where the largest number of people come together to sing.

I have seen the glow in the eyes of our female players on the occasions that large parts of the fanbase visit FCZ Frauen games and I have seen first-hand how the similar displays of fan energy and emotion during the EUROs have been equally appreciated. However, in the long run, I believe women’s teams will establish their own supporter base – creating their own specific fan culture, rituals, and codes.

Based on my impressions of the EUROs, the groundwork for future development is already being laid. I really hope the clubs, media and civil society will all contribute to the further growth of this movement.

 

 

Krystina Emmanouilides

I wanted visitors to have a positive experience 

My motivation to apply for a volunteering role at the UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 was driven by my love for women’s football, combined with a passion and hope to increase awareness of the women’s game and women’s sport in general.

I wanted to be part of a group of people who shaped the experience of those visiting, to make sure they left our beautiful city with a positive experience. If I could, I would be out on the pitch making an impact, but I wasn’t blessed with the passing range and vision of Lia Wälti. So volunteering was the next best option!

During one of my recent shifts, we played a game of football on the street court in the public viewing area: volunteers vs England fans. The England fans won, and I destroyed my sports shoes, but it was so much fun. That same day, at an event organised by FC Zürich, the wife of one of the players and I started a big kickabout with visitors and passers-by. Everyone was getting involved and encouraging others.

Seeing how much people are willing to engage with us as volunteers has been the biggest highlight for me.

 

Lan Do

I volunteered to get out of my bubble

I have got to meet so many people with diverse and exciting backgrounds during the Women’s EUROs. I started volunteering to get out of my usual bubble and to learn about the sometimes not-so-trivial aspects that go into the planning of such an event.

The fun and experience I have had has been beyond my expectations thanks to the relaxed atmosphere, professionalism, and superb organisation by our wonderful volunteer management team. I even got to meet some real-life fruit too! 

 

 

Photos: Getty Images for the City of Zürich

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