MD2882 UEFA European Women’s Championship 2022

1.1    The UEFA European Women's Football Championship is the pinnacle international women’s football competition in Europe. The competition, held every four years, is the women's equivalent of the UEFA European Men’s Football Championship. The tournament is held in one country, or two neighbouring European countries.

1.2    The English Football Association (FA) bid successfully in 2018 to host the 2021 version of the event in England. The GLA led a bid for London to be included within the FA’s bid, and was successful in securing five games (four games at the Brentford Community Stadium, plus the final to be held at Wembley Stadium).

1.3    At the time of the bid, the Mayor approved the GLA’s entry into the Host City Agreement and Guarantees, and provided an overall project budget of £1.1m (under cover of MD2279). 

1.4    The GLA’s entry into a Host City Agreement with UEFA and the FA requires the GLA to commit to several contractual obligations similar, albeit smaller in scale, to those at the Men’s tournament. These include: 

• delivering a Fan Zone within the city for all or part of the tournament
• developing a security concept and meeting the costs associated with delivering a safe and secure host city for teams, officials, media and fans, the costs of which will be largely covered by the Home Office as per EURO 2020
• undertaking a city dressing programme and last-kilometre activations
• ensuring London has the appropriate mobility (transport) plans in place, including the necessary public transport provision
• supporting the overall communication and promotion of the tournament.

1.5    Due to the impact of COVID-19, the tournament was postponed to run between 6 and 31 July 2022. A Reconfirmation of Host City Undertaking letter was signed with UEFA in July 2021, restating the GLA's involvement and obligations for the postponed tournament.

1.6    MD2780, which primarily focused on changes to the scope of the Men’s tournament, also proposed the transfer of £375,000 from the Men’s tournament budget to the Women’s tournament budget. This was in order to sufficiently cover staffing and resourcing costs until the end of the tournament in 2022, taking the overall Women’s EURO budget envelope to £1.475m. 

1.7    A full review of budget requirements has been completed following a review of learnings from delivery of the Men’s tournament, and the rapid growth of the profile and following of women’s football. This review has identified areas requiring significantly more budget allocation in order to meet the demands of the event and the appetite of Londoners to get involved; and to ensure delivery is of the quality and spectacle expected. 

1.8    The appeal and popularity of the event can be evidenced by the success of the recent ticket pre-sale window delivered by the FA. Already 162,000 tickets have been sold across the country, including 58,000 for the final at Wembley. This has far surpassed expectations and targets and shown a huge demand for the event both in the UK  and abroad. 

1.9    A full budgetary consolidation exercise of the Men’s tournament has identified an underspend of at least £2.1m, which is predominantly associated with a reduced Fan Zone programme necessitated by COVID-19. MD2780 noted the ‘intention to transfer underspend from the Men’s tournament (up to the value of £3m), with this being the subject of a future MD’. This MD therefore proposes to transfer £2.1m to the Women’s event.

1.10    The Mayor initially approved a total £1.1m budget (under cover of MD2279) with the initial budget breakdown as below:  

1.11    MD2780 approved the transfer of £375,000 from the Men’s budget to cover the staffing and resourcing costs until the end of 2022. The budget breakdown then was amended as below:

1.12    Taken alongside the requested growth amount, the total proposed budget for the event is now £3.575m, profiled as follows: 

• 2021-22: £1.475m 
• 2022-23: £2.1m.

1.13    The uplifted proposed budget is broken down as follows: 
 

1.14    As was set out in MD2279, the policing and security costs have been excluded from the budget as this is being funded by the Home Office, as per the arrangements for the Men’s tournament. 

1.15    The initial estimate of £1.1m was significantly lower than the current anticipated costs of £3.575m. This is due to early stages of development of the Women’s EURO Host City Agreement, and the experience and understanding we have subsequently gained from the GLA’s delivery of EURO 2020, in which the cost and responsibilities of London as a Host City were greater than originally anticipated. This includes the cost of delivering the Fan Zones, including site hire, infrastructure and planning costs. Furthermore, the initial staffing resource proposed in MD2779 was not enough to enable successful delivery of all areas of the project, hence the approval of the budget transfer of £375k to the staffing budget line in MD2780. 

1.16    The Fan Zone and City Activations budget line has been increased to enable the EURO team to deliver a Fan Zone on Trafalgar Square which caters to the demand of Londoners and visitors, and accurately reflects the profile of the tournament. The enhanced budget allocation will be used to deliver a week-long residency on the Square, with an array of activations for families. The budget has been drafted using actual spend figures from the Men’s event. The budget will also allow for a family-centred series of activations, for example a trail, to engage children and young people in the first week of the school summer holidays. This will link with the FA’s hugely ambitious legacy plan to get more women and girls playing football in all of the host cities; getting women and girls more active both physically and in their communities. 

1.17    The marketing and communications budget line has been increased to include scope to deliver a targeted community campaign which will increase awareness of the tournament and engage European communities across London to get involved. Through targeted messaging and opportunities, the GLA will be able to home in on communities playing in matches in London and ensure they have the awareness and opportunity to access these either live at the stadium, in venues across London or at home. This sense of community will add to the natural civic pride and togetherness that a major international tournament brings to London. 

1.18    The volunteering budget line has increased to reflect the learnings from delivery of the Men’s EURO volunteering programme. In addition to this, host city volunteering programmes must purchase volunteer uniforms through Adidas, at a high cost. This is a contractual obligation. This has meant that further budget is required to deliver the rest of the programme aspects such as recruitment, training and delivery.
 
1.19    An increased budget of £3.575m better reflects the importance and scale of the event. The GLA’s budget for delivery of the Men’s event was £15.4m (which includes costs incurred before the tournament was rescheduled due to COVID-19). Whilst the Women’s event is on a smaller scale, it is important to note that the rapid growth and increasing profile of the sport more than justifies a budget of at least a quarter of the Men’s allocated budget. 
 
1.20    Whilst every effort has been made to scope the full breadth of activities and costs that the GLA will be required to deliver at Women’s EURO 2022, it is anticipated that we will need to source a number of additional goods and services that we have not yet budgeted for. The uncertain future development of the COVID-19 pandemic also contributes to the justification of a healthy contingency allocation. The Major Sports Events team has therefore allocated £300,000 as contingency budget for unscoped goods or services, within this request.

1.21    The Major Sports Events team will continue to keep the resourcing needs of the Women’s EURO 2022 project under review. 

1.22    As per the working arrangement for EURO 2020 (the Men’s tournament), the wider Major Sports Events team will support the project when necessary and feasible, alongside the rest of the events portfolio. 

Potential income 

1.23    As with the Men’s tournament, the GLA’s delivery of key elements of Women’s EURO 2022 in London presents potential income opportunities. This may include: 

• income from food and beverage sales across GLA funded activations, including Fan Zones
• income from the sale of screen advertising and other advertising streams
• additional sponsorship income from Women’s EURO 2022 official sponsors
• additional third-party funding to help facilitate elements of the Women’s EURO 2022 programme through the receipt of third-party contributions and/or benefits in kind. 

1.24    It is also proposed that the Mayor authorises the seeking, receipt and expenditure of income from sponsorship, food and beverage concessions, screen advertising, and other opportunities in the lead up to and during Women’s EURO 2022. This income would reduce the net spend on the project. 

1.25    An estimate of the total income can be based on the £93k of income from the Men’s tournament in 2021. If, by way of example, half of this was brought in on the Women’s tournament, this would reduce the overall spend on the project, creating a £46,5000 underspend.

2.1    GLA support for the event will: 

• support delivery of the GLA’s major sports events strategy, ‘London: Home of World Class Sport’
• increase economic investment into London
• increase international exposure for London as a major destination for world-class sport and tourism
• promote social development in London
• support the Mayor’s priorities around volunteering
• contribute to achieving the Mayor’s ‘Tourism Vision for London’
• deliver across a range of the Mayor’s priorities including community participation and youth engagement.

2.2 More specifically, London hosting five games during Women’s EURO 2022 will: 

• promote women’s football in London and across the country, building on the success and popularity of the England Women's Senior Football Team and the FA Women's Super League
• create a strong narrative around women’s and girls’ participation in football, through building a long-term community engagement programme in Women’s EURO 2022 (including the build-up thereto)
• use the inspiration of EURO 2020 to build excitement, profile and ticket sales for the wider women’s game and the 2022 tournament
• see the finals of both the Men’s and Women’s EUROs played at the same stadia in consecutive years.

3.1.    The equalities element of the Women’s EURO 2022 programme is outlined in MD 2279. In summary, this makes clear that the Major Sports Events team: 

• has consulted a wide range of stakeholders to ensure that as many Londoners as possible, including those with protected characteristics, are considered in the planning of Women’s EURO 2022 and have the opportunity to be involved in some way
• will work to ensure that the volunteering programme eliminates discrimination and is open to all, regardless of race, disability, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief, pregnancy and maternity, and gender reassignment
• will ensure that appropriate assistance is given to all Londoners and visitors at Women’s EURO 2022 venues and GLA funded activations. We will work to ensure that Londoners and visitors with whom we may have had difficulties communicating, as well as those with accessibility issues, are given the tools necessary to maximum engagement in the tournament. 

3.2.    In formulating our plans for Women’s EURO 2022 project, including this growth bid, the GLA has also considered our duty to foster good relations between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and those persons who do not share it. Our plans for delivering the project, including our Fan Zone, will specifically aim to celebrate the diversity of London and attract interest in the tournament from across London’s diverse population. Our volunteering offer will promote integration between those with protected characteristics and those who do not share the same characteristic. Our promotional and marketing communications will seek to target and maximise engagement in the tournament from across London’s broad population. 

Risk

4.1.    Expenditure incurred by the GLA in the delivery of its host city obligations in relation to Women’s EURO 2022 will be through its own decision-making. Any overspend on the GLA’s EURO 2022 project would result from the GLA’s decisions of how it proposes to meet the obligations of the Host City Agreement. However, any increase in scope outside of the Host City Agreement, requested by other key stakeholders (e.g. UEFA, the FA, the government) will be subject to separate negotiation. 

4.2.    The project budget and risk register will be kept under constant review by the Major Sports Events team. Project risks will be managed by the project team and escalated internally where necessary. 

4.3.    Key areas of risk for London hosting Women’s EURO 2022 include the following:  
 

Links to Mayoral strategies and priorities 

4.5    As outlined above, the GLA’s support for Women’s EURO 2022 will support delivery of the GLA’s major sports events strategy, ‘London: Home of World-Class Sport’, and help to increase economic investment and international exposure. 

4.6    It will also deliver across a range of the Mayor’s priorities – including youth and community engagement, volunteering and gender equality – through promoting women’s football in London and creating a strong emphasis on women’s and girls’ participation in football.  

Consultation

4.7    At bid stage, consultation took place on the implications of hosting Women’s EURO 2022 through the normal channels and with a wide range of stakeholders. 

4.8    The GLA will continue to consult and work with all relevant stakeholders and groups as we move towards delivery of Women’s EURO 2022, including, but not limited to, the hosting local authorities, local businesses and residents, TfL, the Metropolitan Police, London & Partners, and other key operational partners with regard to the practical delivery of the event.  

4.9.    UEFA and the FA will also be consulted at every stage of the project and are key partners in the delivery of the event.

Conflicts of interest

4.10    The drafting officers have no known conflicts of interest.

5.1    This MD requests approval for additional expenditure of £2.1 million towards the staging costs of Women’s EURO 2022, taking total spend on the project to £3.575 million (MD2279 approved £1.1m in May 2018 and MD2780 approved a further £0.375m transfer from Men’s Euro budget).

5.2    Section 1 of the decision details how the budget is planned to be spent and the proposed profile spend of the Women’s Euro 2022 total budget is as follow;

• 2021-22 - £1.475m; and
• 2022-23 - £2.1m

5.3    Budget of £2.1m in 2022-23 for Women’s Euro 2022 has been requested as part of 2022-23 budget setting. It is proposed to fund the expenditure from the Major Events reserve; there is adequate funding following the underspend on the Men’s Euro 2020, which was also funded from this reserve.

5.4     This MD also seek approval for the receipt of income from sponsorship, food and beverage concessions, screen advertising and any additional financial contributions from third parties (and entry into the corresponding legal agreements) to reduce the GLA’s net spend. The amount of income expected is yet unknown.

5.5    Delegation of authority to the Executive Director, Strategy and Communications, without the requirement for further decisions, to approve detailed expenditure plans within the £3.575 million envelope, including to vary budget allocations across the project areas is also been sought via this MD.

5.6    Women’s Euro 2022 budget will be managed by the Major Sport Event’s team within Strategy and Communications directorate.

6.1.    The foregoing sections of this report indicate that the decisions requested of the Mayor fall within the statutory powers of the Authority to promote and/or to do anything which is facilitative of or conducive or incidental to social development and economic development and wealth creation within Greater London and in formulating the proposals in respect of which a decision is sought officers have complied with the Authority’s related statutory duties to:

• pay due regard to the principle that there should be equality of opportunity for all people;
• consider how the proposals will promote the improvement of health of persons, health inequalities between persons and to contribute towards the achievement of sustainable development in the United Kingdom; and
• consult with appropriate bodies.

6.2.    Furthermore, the first and second decisions also fall within the statutory powers of the Authority under section 378 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (the “Act”).  Under that section, the Authority has the power to do anything for the purposes of encouraging people to visit Greater London and to encourage people from outside the United Kingdom to visit the United Kingdom via Greater London.  As set out at paragraph 2.1 above the hosting of the Women’s EURO 2022 serves to promote London nationally and internationally as a destination to visit.

6.3.    In taking the decisions requested of him, the Mayor must have due regard to the Public Sector Equality Duty; namely the need to eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct prohibited by the Equality Act 2010, and to advance equality of opportunity between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic (race, disability, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief, pregnancy and maternity and gender reassignment) and persons who do not share it and foster good relations between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it (section 149 of the Equality Act 2010).  To this end, the Mayor should have particular regard to section 3 (above) of this report.

Procurement of services

6.4.    Officers must ensure that any external services required for Women’s EURO 2022 be procured in accordance with the Authority’s Contracts and Funding Code and with the assistance of Transport for London’s commercial team.  Furthermore, officers must ensure that appropriate contractual documentation be executed by both the Authority and the relevant service providers prior to the commencement of the required services.

Income from sponsorship, concessions and other contributions

6.5.    The second decision above requests approval for the seeking and receipt of income from “sponsorship, food and beverage concessions, screen advertising and any additional financial contributions from third parties”.  Pursuant to section 93 of the Local Government Act 2003, the Authority has the power to charge for discretionary services.  However, the officers should note that this power is subject to a duty to ensure that, taking one financial year with another, the income from the charges must not exceed the costs associated with the provision of the services.  Furthermore, under section 378(9) of the Act, the Authority may receive contributions towards its expenses in carrying out its functions.  Accordingly, to the extent that income is unrelated to sponsorship and concessions – for example the additional financial contributions from third parties – that income may also be received by the Authority for the purposes of its hosting of the Women’s EURO 2022.

The delegation

6.6    Any function exercisable by the Mayor on behalf of the Authority may also be exercised by any member of staff of the Authority albeit subject to any conditions, which the Mayor sees fit to impose.  To this end, the Mayor may make the requested delegation to the Executive Director, Strategy and Communications, if he so chooses.