Germany’s national railway company, Deutsche Bahn, has signed up as an official partner of European handball’s flagship event, the Men’s EHF EURO 2024 in Germany.
The deal was brokered by Infront, the European Handball Federation’s exclusive media and marketing partner, and marks the first time that Deutsche Bahn engages in international handball.
As official partner Deutsche Bahn receives title and logo rights as well as extensive TV exposure, including presence on LED boards, floors stickers and media backdrops.
Furthermore, as the championship’s mobility partner, Deutsche Bahn will help significantly to reduce the tournament’s carbon footprint.
All 24 participating national teams, tournament officials, organising committee members and EHF staff will travel between the venues by train.
Ticket holders in Germany as well as fans arriving from abroad will benefit from reduced DB ticket prices when travelling to the matches, putting ecological sustainability firmly on the map for Men’s EHF EURO 2024.
Additionally, the championship will be promoted across railway stations in Germany and in dedicated TV spots aired in the lead-up to the tournament.
The Men’s EHF EURO 2024 will be held in Germany from 10-28 January 2024, with games taking place in Dusseldorf, Berlin, Mannheim, Munich, Hamburg and Cologne.
Commenting on the agreement, EHF Secretary General Martin Hausleitner said: "We’re proud and happy to welcome such a prestigious partner as Deutsche Bahn on board the Men’s EHF EURO. Sustainability is a key part of the good governance aspect of our Master Plan for European handball and becomes more and more important for our stakeholders. Reducing the environmental impact of the EHF’s events is a very important step and one of our key ambitions."
James Chubb, Head of Handball at Infront, said: "By offering reduced train tickets to venues, Deutsch Bahn is using a value-driven activation to enable fans to attend the tournament and experience the excitement of live handball at the highest level, something many sponsors are doing now. It forms part of an overall sustainability approach from all parties and also aims to ensure that teams and officials can travel between venues efficiently and with reduced climate impact, as they strive to make the tournament more environmentally friendly."
Michael Peterson, Member of the DB Management Board for Long Distance Passenger Transport, said: "We are delighted to have the German Handball Association travel sustainably with Deutsche Bahn. A new mobility partner, we now bring all DHB teams to their matches fast, in comfort and in a climate-friendly way. The Men's EHF EURO 2024 in Germany is all about green mobility: National teams and their fans can reach all six match venues by ICE several times an hour."
Mark Schober, CEO of the German Handball Federation said: "Our six host cities, Dusseldorf, Berlin, Mannheim, Munich, Hamburg and Cologne, are easily reachable by train. We want to make use of this infrastructure to reduce the tournament’s carbon footprint which occurs because of the necessary travels. This agreement marks an additional and huge step for the German Handball Federation towards ecological sustainability."
