President of UEFA, Aleksander Ceferin, arrived in London last week to unveil the logo for Euro 2020, the 60th edition of the continental tournament. Not only was the branding announced, but UEFA confirmed the location of 13 host cities spread across Europe from Dublin in the west to Baku, Azerbaijan in the east. While many greeted the news with scepticism, it is not all be doom and gloom for Europe's most prestigious tournament.
For most of the cities, including Dublin, Glasgow and Baku, their respective nations are unlikely to ever have the infrastructure to host the major tournament, so this new format gives them an opportunity to immerse themselves in the competition, a privilege they would not have got if the structure remained untouched.
Unlike most tournaments, where the host qualifies automatically, everyone will have to fight for their spot in the tournament, which will be helped by additional qualification spots through the introduction of the UEFA Nations League. Ex-UEFA President, Michel Platini toyed with the idea of a revamped Euros with his successor, Ceferin putting the plan into action.
One criticism about the new structure, is the selection of locations. No matches are being played in France, presumably as they hosted the tournament in the summer, while Baku, Azerbaijan and St Petersburg, Russia are the furthest that anyone will have to travel. Both will be difficult to travel to, with no direct flights from London Heathrow and prices already totalling close to £300 for a one way ticket. St Petersburg is slightly cheaper with a one way ticket costing £107 out of London Gatwick. It is also good to put the World Cup into perspective, Brazil has an area of 3.288 million square miles, just 700,000 less than Europe, while Russia is almost twice the size of Europe while USA is roughly similar.
All of the stadiums exceed a 50,000 capacity except Parken in Copenhagen which holds a modest 38,000, with destination of the Final, Wembley, holding the most at 90,000. As the majority of stadiums are already built - the Krestovsky Stadium in St Petersburg is due to be completed by the end of the year and the Puskas Ferenc Arena in Budapest will be opened in 2019 - all will have a purpose once the tournament and costs will be low for each host city.
Travel links between each of the cities in Europe are extensive, and with a bit of patience an appropriate deal at a cost effective price can be found. It is possible that €200 could cover your travel expenses for the group stages, with an Interrail global pass being one of your many ways to travel on a budget. Rome, Munich, Budapest, Copahagen, Brussels and Bucharest are all popular interrailing destinations so rail travel between the cities should not be a problem.
The recently elected UEFA President believes that the tournament will be a success, commenting, "There is great pleasure in being able to see football acting as a bridge between nations, and to carry the competition closer to the fans who are the essential lifeblood of the game." After the hooliganism and terror threats that plagued Euro 2016, the controversial World Cup bids from Russia and Qatar and the deaths and protests that marred Brazil 2014, I'm willing to give the new format a chance.