On 15 November 2023, Adidas presented the official match ball for UEFA EURO 2024 for the first time. The presentation was followed by a five-day event, which took place directly in front of the Berlin Olympic Stadium. In order to put the new ball into immediate use, a temporary round playing field was created in the middle of a specially raised ‘crater’ – this was used both as part of an official programme while at the same time being made accessible to members of the public.
PRG Germany acted as general technical service provider for the event and used a total of 48 GLP ArenaLED1 Touring systems to illuminate the playing area, with 12 fixtures mounted on each of four arrays.
These lined the playing area, which was equipped with turf, lines and goals, and ensured bright, even illumination. Several football teams competed against each other over the various days of the event.
“The requirement was to illuminate the area evenly and, above all, to make it suitable for television,” said David Schlichting, on-site manager for PRG. “The area had to be bright enough at all times so that television crews and influencers could easily make their own contributions. In addition, there were various show performances in which the ArenaLED1 Touring was also integrated into the announcement, as well as during entrances and exits, in order to create, for example, strobe effects, dim phasers and the like.”
The GLP ArenaLED1 Touring is a weatherproof (IP65) solution specifically for professional sports and event venues. In addition to the standard conventional basic lighting, dynamic colour scenes can also be created. In the Touring version, the ArenaLED1 consists of a single, efficient lamp head that offers a luminous flux of up to 24,900 lumens. This makes it ideal for large events and sporting events that require a fast, flexible lighting solution.
Other criteria was set by PRG when selecting the lighting for the ‘Love of Football’ (Fußballliebe) event, as Schlichting highlighted: “Our project management specified a compact area light with fixed beam angles that would be absolutely resilient in the outdoor area. This included a closed housing, of course, but also the ability to endure extreme temperatures. This production was actually an extreme example of challenging outdoor conditions, as we had to deal with a combination of heavy rain showers, extreme wind and cold. The assembly and dismantling process was also correspondingly wet and dirty.”
However, this didn’t affect the ArenaLED1 Touring. “The lamp managed to master all the weather-related challenges,” Schlichting concluded.
