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Only a Game? - National Football Museum contributes to exhibition in Brussels
23 May - 26 August 2007
The National Football Museum has been asked to contribute to a prestiguous exhibition in Brussels. An exhibition in which UEFA and the Brussels regional government are teaming up to portray the theme of Europe and football.
Objects on loan from the National Football Museum include: the Eric Cantona Spitting Image puppet and match shirts worn by George Best, Miquel Munoz, Robert Jonquet and Peter Schmeichel. We are grateful to the Priory Collection for their assistance.
European idea
'Only a Game?' runs from 23 May to 26 August 2007 in the Parc du Cinquantennaire, Brussels' most prestigious exhibition venue. Throughout 2007, the Belgian capital and host to European political institutions will promote itself as a tourist destination through the idea of Europe. This year sees the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, which became the foundation for the modern-day European Union.
Europe and its football
The goal is to explore Europe from a different angle - through the lens of football. One of the most eye-catching features of the visit is a set of giant table-football figures, three metres high, which use new technologies to tell the personal stories of some of Europe's most colourful footballers. Elsewhere, visitors can travel across Europe by means of an interactive sphere that reacts to the movements of the fingertip. The teams in the 2006/07 UEFA Champions League will provide the locations for a high-tech geography lesson.
For young and old
The exhibition has been designed with everyone in mind - young and old, fans of football, and even those who are not. Visitors will be able to immerse themselves in the great stories featuring the star players, and will encounter many interactive elements and rare items from prestigious European sports museums.
Shining example
Lilian Thuram, the FC Barcelona and France star, has agreed to be patron of the exhibition - and support is also being given by other football personalities, such as the former Danish star Morten Olsen, who spent many years in Belgium, and who will be bringing exhibition items from Cologne on 14 May. The Hamburger SV and Belgium defender Vincent Kompany, one of the country's rising stars who was born in Brussels, will also be taking part in activities during the period that the exhibition runs.
Reflecting European society
The exhibition's content shows football reflecting European society - its strengths (democratic participation, integration, solidarity) and the less positive aspects such as racism and violence. These issues are to be discussed in a debate to be televised on Belgian channel TV Brussel. European football journalists will be joined by Ivo Belet, a Member of the European Parliament who recently produced a report on the future of European professional football that was backed by a large majority in the Parliament, and which supported many of UEFA's core values and policies. The exhibition will be open to the public from 23 May.
For more details go to www.uefa.com