My name is Paul Seline and I joined adidas in 1992. Since then – starting with the FIFA World Cup in the USA in 1994 – I have had the opportunity and tremendous privilege to contribute to, manage elements of, and then lead adidas efforts related to 6 World Cups. Currently, I am the Global Project Lead at adidas for 2014 FIFA World Cup Project. And while for most people, a World Cup starts on the day of the opening game, for adidas and for me things are already in full swing…
This evening, in Nuremberg, Germany will play Kazakhstan in the latest round of qualifiers for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Despite their busy schedules, three of the national team players, Philipp Lahm, Per Mertesacker and Sven Bender found the time to stop by adidas Headquarters in Herzogenaurach for an equally exciting contest. On Monday, March 25th at 12 noon there was a showdown at the adidas Brand Center. Two teams, ‘Team Bender’ and ‘Team Mertesacker’, went head to head, alongside adidas employees, in a tough battle to become the winners of the first ever adidas football quiz.
I just started my internship with Simone’s team. However, two month ago I already had the opportunity to combine a Christmas-trip to my home country Colombia with a visit to the “Fundación Tiempo de Juego” in Soacha. In a nutshell it is an organization which uses football and other activities to promote values and formal education amongst kids and teenagers in the most vulnerable areas of Colombia. This is the inspiring story of a student, who wasn’t willed to agree with the assumption that the kids of a nearby, poor and troubled neighbourhood were part of the problem; he preferred to consider them as the solution and took the reins.
Often, when we think about the UEFA European Championships, we think of the likes of Schweinsteiger, Neuer and Xavi and a crowd of people celebrating and cheering for their favorite teams on the streets or in beer gardens (at least we do so here in Germany).
But there are also some people who start to put all their energy into the tournament well before it even starts: at adidas these are, for example, the team members of the Business Unit (BU) Football. This team makes sure that adidas (as the Official Partner, Supplier and Licensee of the UEFA EURO 2012™) offers the most innovative products for each and every tournament. Among other things, they create and design the jerseys, develop the boots, as well as the Official Match Ball, and help Europe’s top footballing nations to compete at their highest level. Alltogether, they work hard every day to fulfill the dream of every European football player and his respective fans – to win the European Championship.
The BU Football team used the tournament as a great opportunity to see and experience what they have been working on throughout the past few years and, most importantly, to find inspiration for the upcoming tournaments. In addition, as a sign of appreciation from their supervisors for all their work and dedication, the team went by bus on a road trip to Poland to watch Spain vs. Ireland at the PGE Arena in Danzig, Poland.
The excitement and passion of fans from all around the globe and especially from the ones in the host-countries of the UEFA EURO 2012™, Poland and the Ukraine, is huge; the passion for football and for the tournament itself. Seeing all the incredible pictures on TV showcases why so many people are so emotional about football and why there is always a reason to go all in for this sport. Just to give you an example: In Berlin alone, approximately half a million people showed up at the public viewing site right in front of the Brandenburg Gate and more than 30 million Germans watched the game against Denmark – and this wasn’t even the quarter final yet! And the excitement in Poland is huge as well, even if the EURO hype slightly decreased due to Poland’s tournament drop out. I know, because I got the opportunity to be part of an adidas delegation, including Herbert Hainer (CEO) and Markus Baumann (Senior Vice President adidas Global Football), which went to Warsaw.
