Euro 2021: Totti, U2 and acrobatic patrol ... all about the opening ceremony before Italy-Turkey

We like to make fun of it but we wouldn't miss it for the world.

Organized just before the opening match, the opening ceremony of the Euro will serve this Friday evening as the ultimate aperitif for football fans, starved to death because they have been weaned from international competition for three years.

Diving into the millimeter program - which does not prevent some unforeseen events such as Robbie Williams' famous middle finger at the Moscow World Cup - a ceremony fortunately much shorter than that of the Olympic Games ... but not necessarily less kitsch.

The Turkey-Italy opening match (at 9 p.m., live on TF1 and BeIN Sports) will take place at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, which will have put on its lights. The actual ceremony will take place just before the kickoff of this first shock. Called "Triumph of the Euro", it will take place precisely between the end of the players' warm-up and the entry of the two teams onto the pitch. Francesco Totti and Alessandro Nesta, two ancient Roman glories, one in the jersey of Roma and the other of Lazio, will shoot a balloon in the sky to start the festivities.

Then place at the show.

The lucky ones, 16,000 in number, who will populate the bays of the

Foro Italico

, will then raise their eyes to admire the passage of the

Frecce Triccolori

("The tricolor arrows"), the acrobatic patrol of the transalpine air force.

Unmissable classic, 24 large balloons inflated with helium to symbolize the teams involved and a

"vertical choreography"

with dancers and drummers installed on the roof of the stadium will punctuate the beginning of the ceremony.

DJ Martin Garrix and a half of U2 for a virtual show

The highlight of the show, Super Bowl style, comes next: Andrea Bocelli, world-famous Italian tenor, will perform

Nessun Dorma

by Giacomo Puccini before giving way to Dutch star DJ Martin Garrix, singer Bono and guitarist The Edge (U2), who will offer a virtual performance on the official Euro anthem "We Are The People

 "

.

🎵 @MartinGarrix

with Bono and The Edge just uploaded the official UEFA song # EURO2020!

🎧

Listen to #WeAreThePeople

⤵️⤵️⤵️⤵️⤵️⤵️https: //t.co/pWQr6uBBqW pic.twitter.com/ggdCoj8MIQ

- EURO 2020 🇫🇷 (@ EURO2020FR) May 14, 2021

"The performance, which revolves around a live concert in a stadium, will blend the song's hopeful and positivist lyrics with powerful images brought to life by technology," UEFA said in a statement. The pitch will be transformed into a blue and white flame, energy fields will be created from millions of particles of light, and Bono will be projected onto the stage to deliver a powerful yet intimate vocal performance "that will resonate with millions of people. viewers who will watch the concert from home, ”says UEFA.

“The opening ceremony at the Olimpico in Rome will be the perfect preamble to the tournament and I am happy that the collaboration between three great artists, Martin Garrix, Bono and The Edge, also makes it possible to produce this virtual show which will give the opportunity to all fans of Europe and the world to feel closer to the tournament.

We Are The People

embodies the celebration of solidarity and partying at the heart of UEFA EURO 2020, and I am sure fans will be excited about this virtual performance to watch at home or online, ”said the manager UEFA Marketing Guy-Laurent Epstein. The performance, recorded in motion capture studios in London, was also captured in Rome to recreate the Stadio Olimpico in 3D and enhance the viewer experience.