Welcome to CAFE
Welcome to our July 2016 newsletter, with a round up of disabled fans stories at UEFA EURO 2016 and elsewhere around Europe. For more information, visit www.cafefootball.eu
'I'm a wheelchair user and I can go to a match'
Jean-Pierre Inacio is a disabled fan from Bordeaux, and he has shared his matchday experience at UEFA EURO 2016.
"What I like about football, and particularly at the moment for the EUROs, is to have the chance to be surrounded by European fans, to meet people, and to share the excitement," he explained. "That's what life is all about!"
Joyce Cook, CAFE Managing Director, shared her views on the matter. "Jean-Pierre's EURO 2016 story will resonate with most football fans and highlights why CAFE and UEFA's commitment to disabled fans is so important. Without good access, disabled people are quite simply excluded.
Click here to read more about Jean-Pierre's experience.
UEFA.org has also published a fantastic video of Jean-Pierre's matchday, which we highly recommend watching. To view this, please click here.
If you have attended matches at UEFA EURO 2016, you can HAVE YOUR SAY on your experiences using the CAFE website stadium pages here.
CAFE UEFA EURO 2016 information guide for disabled fans
If you are not already familiar with the CAFE UEFA EURO 2016 information guide for disabled fans, you may find it useful especially if you are attending tomorrow's Final.
You can download the guide in English, French and German.
This guide aims to provide all the information necessary to plan journeys to and in the host cities. The objective is to ensure that disabled people are given a warm welcome on arrival in the host cities and all the help they need to reach their dedicated area inside the stadium. The integration of accessibility in the host city mobility plans will mean that, as well as the information contained in this guide, more significant measures can be taken that will remain in place after the tournament is over.
Disabled fan receives Paris Medal of City on behalf of Republic of Ireland fans
Disabled Republic of Ireland fan Jamie Monaghan has collected the ‘Medal of the City’ from the Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, on behalf of his fellow fans.
Jamie attended each of Ireland’s four games at the tournament and captured the imagination of his fellow travelling supporters and the French public with his flamboyant wheelchair, which was fully decorated in his team’s colours. The medal was awarded to fans from Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland fans for displaying "exemplary sportsmanship during the tournament".
Jamie recently travelled back to Paris to collect the award at the Eiffel Tower Fan Zone. Jim Spratt of the Amalgamation of Official Northern Ireland Supporters' Clubs (AOINSC) also collected a 'Medal of the City' on behalf of Northern Irish fans.
Congratulations Jamie - a very worthy recipient of the medal on behalf of his fellow fans.
Read more
Audio Description for blind fans at UEFA EURO 2016
CAFE has been implementing an Audio-Descriptive Commentary service for blind and partially sighted fans throughout UEFA EURO 2016, aiming for the second consecutive finals to leave a lasting legacy in stadiums and improve access to football.
CAFE has been working closely with UEFA and the tournament organisers, and stadium authorities as part of the UEFA EURO 2016 'Respect – Access for All' programme. The goal has been to offer this service in French for the European tournament and also as a legacy initiative, with the broadcasting equipment donated to each host stadium after the finals.
Kevin Vanderborght, a 32-year-old blind football fan, who left his home in Charleroi, Belgium, at 02:00 to support his team playing the Republic of Ireland in Bordeaux, shared his experience just after the game: "What I love most about football is the amazing atmosphere, to be surrounded by my friends here.
Click here to read more about audio-descriptive commentary at UEFA EURO 2016.
UEFA.org has also published a video of disabled fans enjoying the service at the Finals. To view this, please click here.
CAFE supports German disabled fans group to provide audio-descriptive commentary at UEFA EURO 2016
Partially sighted and blind German-speaking fans were able to enjoy audio-descriptive commentary at Germany matches during the knockout stages of UEFA EURO 2016.
The service was provided locally in the stadiums by Handicap Fanclub Fußball Nationalmannschaft e.V - the disabled supporters group of the Germany national team. Fans could listen to the live audio-descriptive commentary via conference call.
To support this, and as part of the UEFA EURO 2016 Respect Access for All project, CAFE was pleased to make a donation of €500 to the group to help cover their costs.
Read more
If you would like to share your experiences at UEFA EURO 2016 with CAFE, please do email us at info@cafefootball.eu. Please also send any photographs that you may have taken.
Still time to HAVE YOUR SAY - CAFE European survey 2016
The CAFE European survey 2016 is still live, meaning that you can still have your say on access and inclusion if you haven't already.
We are calling on disabled fans, their companions and advocates to take part in this survey. We want to know about your experiences, and the remaining barriers that you believe are preventing all disabled football fans from attending live matches. We greatly appreciate your opinions which will help us to determine the next stages of our ongoing works and our shared ambition to work together to promote wider inclusion across the game.
The survey is available in the following languages:
If you would prefer to take the survey in an alternative language please do contact us and we will try to help. If you have any questions regarding the survey, you can email us at info@cafefootball.eu, tweet @cafefootball or call +44 (0)20 8621 2405.
News in brief
Disabled fans comments - Have Your Say
The Have Your Say section of the CAFE website is your opportunity to share your matchday experiences with us. Tell us what you found good, not good, and what you felt could have been improved. Fans comments are taken seriously, and can help to make a real positive change for other disabled fans visiting the stadium in the future.
Leaving your fans comments is easy to do. Simply go to www.cafefootball.eu and using the dropdown menus select the stadium that you have recently visited. Each stadium has its own fans comments section where you can share your experiences in any language.
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