The two fan zones in the city centre were very popular during the first half of the UEFA Women's Euro 2025 tournament. On peak days, the fan zones reach their capacity limits, but the additional facilities on Theaterplatz provide relief. Due to the open nature of the zones, there is no exact count of visitors, but estimates continue to suggest that half a million people will attend by the end of the tournament. The attractions are varied and appeal to a wide audience. ‘In Basel, a lot revolves around football, but not everything. This has made it possible to appeal to and inspire a wider audience,’ says Sabine Horvath, overall project manager for UEFA Women's Euro 2025 in Basel, halfway through the tournament. ‘And with the giant footballs on the Mittlere Brücke, the city has sent a strong signal for football that will be remembered.’ The temporary art installation ‘Bridge Kick’ by Klaus Littmann is a popular photo opportunity. On each match day in Basel, one of the balls will be signed by the respective teams.

Open fan zones with lots of cultural and leisure activities

In addition to public viewing, the stage programme with freestyle shows and the trophy exhibition ‘Pokale zum Träumen’ (Trophies to Dream About) are a magnet for visitors to Barfüsserplatz. The Historical Museum has already registered around 5,500 visitors. At the Messeplatz, the soccer court, giant slide and ball course get the public moving. Over 3,200 participants have already registered for the ball course. A leaderboard is kept and the top players will win a free weekend in Basel at the end of the tournament.

On peak days, when the fan zones reach capacity, additional facilities will be available at Theaterplatz. This will be the case again this Friday for the match between Switzerland and Spain and on Saturday for the quarter-final between Germany and France.

Between 30 and 60 volunteers are on duty in the fan zones every day. A total of over 400 shifts have already been completed by volunteers. Without this support, it would not be possible to run the fan zones and the various activities on offer.

Discover Basel between the stadium and the banks of the Rhine

Basel Tourism has set itself the goal for UEFA Women's Euro 2025 of highlighting the beauty of the city alongside the action on the pitch. Visitors with a valid match ticket were able to take part in a free city tour on match days. In addition, employees of the tourism organisation answered questions about swimming in the Rhine at the Tinguely Museum and sold the popular Wickelfisch. "As an initial short-term effect, we expect an increase in overnight stays of 5 to 10 per cent in July compared to last year. And the visit of over 30 journalists as part of our media trips will also contribute to Basel's visibility in the medium to long term," says Ann Müller, Head of Visitor Experience.

Calm proceedings and good cooperation in the security sector

From the perspective of the Basel-Stadt cantonal police, which works closely with the ambulance service, the professional fire brigade, the Basel-Stadt rescue service and the Basel-Landschaft police, the tournament has also been running smoothly so far. The operations during the match days in Basel remained largely calm. The composition of the audience is also striking: compared to the men's tournaments, it is much more diverse, which promotes peaceful interaction. During the matches involving the German and French teams, police officers from the neighbouring countries were also on duty as part of the trinational cooperation. ‘Coordination with our colleagues from Germany and France is working extremely well,’ says Beat Loosli, deputy head of operations for UEFA Women's Euro 2025 at the Basel-Stadt cantonal police. ‘Our joint presence builds trust and helps to prevent misunderstandings from arising in the first place.’

Diversity on stage, football in our hearts

The fan zones have plenty of highlights in store for the second half of the tournament. From 22 to 27 July, the concert programme will bring a wide range of acts from the region and Switzerland to the Barfi stage – from indie folk and electro to soul, R&B and rap to reggae and disco. Well-known acts such as Stei­ner & Madlaina and Bettina Schelker will be performing, as well as the winner of this year's Swiss Music Award for Best Act Romandie, NNAVY. ‘The artists we have invited stand for female empowerment, creativity, team spirit and expressiveness. These are attributes that also characterise women's football,’ say Steffi Klär and Jennifer Perez, who are responsible for the musical programme. This will be complemented by open-air movie nights on 15 and 20 July at Barfüsserplatz and on 15, 20, 24, 25 and 26 July at Messeplatz.

Large crowds of fans at the Swiss match and the quarter-final in Basel

The first match played by their team was watched by around 17,000 fans from Germany at the ‘Joggeli’ stadium. Although the French fans were clearly outnumbered in the match against the Netherlands, they made their presence felt with loud cheering. Even larger crowds are expected on both sides for the quarter-final match on 19 July. An LED wall will therefore be set up again on Theaterplatz on the day of the quarter-final.

The crowds could be even larger for the quarter-final match between Spain and Switzerland, which is why public viewing will also be offered on Theaterplatz for this match.