Since Willy appeared at the World Cup in 1966, mascots, from big-nosed toys to lion-devil hybrids, have brought joy to major soccer tournaments around the world.
The UEFA European Championship waited until 1980 to unveil its first mascot, but since then the story has been fascinating.
Euro 80, Italy: Pinocchio
Every child is aware of the dangers of lying: lie and your nose will grow like a carrot. Tell the truth and you'll get rid of your wooden toy life in exchange for a normal childhood. Considered one of the most popular books in the world during the tournament, Pinocchio is the perfect mascot character for the inaugural European Championship.
Euro 84, France: Peno
This Rooster was smartly dressed in home team France kit - boots, ball and all. Called Peno in French slang for punishment, it certainly brought good luck to the "roosters" who won the competition on home soil.
EURO 88, West Germany: Bernie
If few expected a rabbit, even fewer could have predicted his name - Bernie. There was logic in this madness. The "lovable and enthusiastic football fan", according to the German Football Association, is aptly named after the city of Bern: the then headquarters of UEFA and the place where Germany lifted the FIFA World Cup in 1954. With two sports bands on his wrists and one on his head, he looked , that Bernie is having fun. Well, the 2006 campaign to revive Bernie for the World Cup came to nothing.
Euro 92, Sweden: Rabbit
Sweden - the fourth country to inaugurate a mascot for Europe's most prestigious football championship - had to offer something inventive, something fun, something original. They had the chance to pull a rabbit out of the hat and they did just that. A rabbit named Rabbit.
Euro 96, England: Goaliath
Goaliath ends the rabbit streak. Thirty years after Willie started it all at the World Cup in his giddy Union Jack vest, this lion had a tough task. But with three lions on his shirt, England could hardly have chosen otherwise - in a smart white and navy number, Goaliat was the gentle giant loved by the crowd.
Euro 2000, Netherlands-Belgium: Benelux
With 5,000 contenders to choose from, the competition's co-organizers had no excuse and they did it right. Named in part in honor of the Belgium/Netherlands/Luxembourg union, Benelux was also a combination of the Latin "bene" and the English "luck", thus offering positive emotions to all competing nations. Part devil in the vein of the Belgian team's nickname, the Red Devils, and part lion in reference to the national symbol of the Dutch, Benelux was a triumph any way you looked at it.
Euro 2004, Portugal: Kinas
Portugal narrowly missed becoming the first host since France to make the most of the talisman's strict purpose: to bring good luck. Defeat by Greece in the final disappointed the Portuguese, despite the efforts of a small boy dressed in his team's kit, whose name was derived from the five blue shields - or kinas - in Portugal's coat of arms. Kynas, however, was a boy with special abilities which were best demonstrated through some incredible antics in midfield.
Euro 2008, Austria-Switzerland: Trix and Flix
Twice and twice the fun: Trix and Flix, the mysterious twins from the Alps, dazzled and confused in equal measure. They each represented one of the host nations, and the mischievous duo even got an official soundtrack.
Their musical accompaniment - Shaggy's Feel the Rush - raised many spirits and set the tone for parties that were so loud that their image, unlike all their predecessors, did not even need a football.
Euro 2012, Poland-Ukraine: Slavek and Slavko
It is always important to get the approval of local dignitaries and the then president of the Polish Football Association, Grzegorz Lato, immediately fell in love with Slavek and Slavko. "I especially like their hair - 40 years ago I had hair like that too," he said. And what that hair was - tousled to the ceiling and dyed in the national colors of the home team, in case the team jerseys weren't enough.
Euro 2016, France: Super Victor
Super Victor had a magic cape, boots and a ball. He could fly from host city to host city - a particularly useful superpower for a Euro mascot.
Euro 2020: Skilzi
The freestyler Skillzy (Skillzy from English skills - "skills") was chosen for his role as the mascot of Euro 2020 after an impromptu participation in a pan-European talent contest. A party with friends in the parking lot catapulted him to center stage at an audition next door after a difficult freestyle trick went awry — breaking a window and embarrassing one of the talent show contestants. Skilzi's tricks and moves when returning the ball impressed the delighted judges - and the rest is history.
Euro 2024: Albert
The official mascot of Euro 24 was named Albert following a vote conducted among UEFA.com users and students across Europe through UEFA's Football in Schools programme. The bear mascot was first introduced to Germany fans before the national team's friendly match against Colombia at the Arena auf Schalke (now Feltins Arena) stadium, but made its debut that morning at a primary school in another city in the country, Gelsenkirchen. highlighting the ambition to inspire children across Europe and promote a love of football and its values. | BGNES
