More than one in four Germans have no interest in the upcoming Euro 2024 to be held in their country, the biggest sporting event held in Germany in almost two decades, a survey conducted for public broadcaster ARD showed on Wednesday.
The organizers and the German team hope to unleash among the population a wave of enthusiasm similar to that of the 2006 World Cup, nicknamed “the fairy tale of summer.”
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But so far some Germans do not seem convinced: 27% have no interest in the tournament that begins on June 14 in 10 cities in Germany and ends with the final on July 14 in Berlin.
Less than half of respondents (43%) said they were very interested in the event, while 28% were less interested, ARD said.
Germany, three-time European champions and winners of four World Cup trophies, has failed to make any international impact in the past 10 years, also falling in the group stage at consecutive World Cups in 2018 and 2022.
However, there have been signs of improvement under new coach Julian Nagelsmann, who took over in October, with the team claiming two wins and a draw in their last three international friendlies this year.
They will play Greece on Friday in their last warm-up match before the tournament begins next week.
Germans also expressed concern about safety during the tournament: 42% were worried or very worried about safety and only 14% had few concerns.
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said on Tuesday that Germany was stepping up security before the start of the event to prevent possible threats from Islamic extremist groups, hooligans, violent individuals and cyber attacks.
Germany expects 2.7 million people to attend matches in stadiums across the country and about 12 million in fan zones to watch them outdoors, it said. But security fears have increased after a series of attacks in recent months.
Faeser said there was no concrete indication of a threat, but that Germany was doing everything it could to make the event safe.
