Top tips for an inclusive approach to enabling staff to watch Euro 2024

As England go into the knockout stages of Euro 24 championships many organisations will be tempted to ‘treat’ their employees by letting them watch the match together during working hours.

While it may come from good intentions, the gesture could backfire if football, or indeed the excitement around the England team, is not for everyone.

To maximise the team bonding opportunity, Daniel Gualdino, Senior People Scientist at employee experience platform, Culture Amp, shares below some simple steps organisations can take to make office or workplace happenings more meaningful, empathetic and inclusive for all their workforce – whether they enjoy football or not:

• Give equal consideration to other summer events – such as parents’ requests to attend school sports days as to watching Euro 24 football matches and strengthening equitable treatment for workforces
• Communicate when different countries’ events/games are televised/streamed, what times / time zones people are allowed to watch them, the organisation’s rules on alcohol consumption, and expected standards of behaviour (no aggressive behaviour, observing rules on displaying national flags, etc.)
• Hold ‘preview’ and ‘winners’ events such as in-person/hybrid socials where people share which team they follow and reasons why, how their country might celebrate victory with a traditional celebration or meal; companies with multiple locations can highlight their ‘winners’ echoing the way that Premier League and other top flight clubs ‘welcomed back their winning players’ after the 2022 World Cup
• There’s more to sport than football! This summer, consider activities around other high profile events such as Wimbledon or the Olympics.
• Finally, remember, being a gracious winner is part of being an empathetic manager. By taking a few minutes or having a quick social to acknowledge the winner or saluting a particular country, the organisation is embracing the sport, not just the team.

Photo by Emilio Garcia on Unsplash