EMG delivered broadcast facilities, on behalf of UEFA across all 31 matches of the UEFA Women’s EUROs football championships, culminating in the spectacular final between England and Germany at a sold-out Wembley Stadium yesterday.
The EMG delivery team was led by Chrissie Collins. 50% of the Directors and Unit Managers were female, reflecting the Group’s commitment to Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) and championing the need for gender balance in technical roles with a focus on encouraging female crew to work at the matches. Chrissie, a mentor with the RISE (a group for gender diversity within the industry) oversaw a total of 464 crews: 126 from Sunset & Vine and 336 from EMG.
EMG had a fleet of five NOVA OB trucks for 31 matches in ten stadiums spread across England. The distance between these stadiums, driving times, where team members were located, time to rig, de-rig and transmit, all had to be factored in and calculated by the EMG team in producing a sustainable and environmentally friendly crew schedule for the tournament.
Chrissie Collins, Client Manager, EMG said: “The Women’s EUROs is a huge operation to plan for logistically. It’s tough for our production services team to look at all the information and plot how this going to work into a schedule. We studied the distance between grounds and the time it takes to get there, how many people we’d need on the team, reflecting the right gender balance within the crew and all the tasks that need to be completed, etc. Everything. It’s been fantastic, and everyone has really enjoyed it. Once we were underway, with the strength and depth in our team, we got into a smooth rhythm in no time.”
Rohan Mitchell, Director of ESG, EMG, said: “In every project that we are involved with, we want to ensure that our output reflects our values of diversity, inclusion and belonging – but also a commitment to being a sustainable business. We put a lot of effort into planning to ensure matches were delivered in the most sustainable way, causing as little damage to the environment as possible.”
Sunset & Vine provided the full production team to successfully deliver the tournament, bringing their expertise through a creative team of directors, production managers, floor managers and world feed producers. From the EMG family, specialist camera provider, ACS supplied minicams and the ACS SMARTgrip™, Broadcast RF supplied RF cameras and Boost Graphics provided graphics and data processing. UHD native graphics were managed with NEXT, the EMG graphics solution, and coupled to the UEFA data feed to capture live statistics, such as team line-ups and VAR decisions, automatically. Four experienced operators managed by BOOST worked on machines embedded into the main OB.
Shaun Gregory, CEO, EMG, said: “It’s been a privilege to work for our friends at UEFA and help to deliver yet another successful international football tournament. This is a watershed moment for women in football. The game continues to grow, capturing the interest of supporters and exposure is a key part of that, we all have our part to play. EMG is proud to be involved in the coverage of this tournament and support the growth of women’s sport.”
Pictured: Rosanne Elzinga UEFA WEURO Broadcast Venue Manager, Media Rights & Production Services; Chrissie Collins, Client Manager EMG UK; Reda Smeleviciute-Law, UEFA Women’s EURO 2022, Broadcast Venue Manager
Jon Creamer
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