Giving players the power to create

The European Handball Federation explored new territory at the Women’s EHF EURO 2024 in Austria, Hungary and Switzerland, offering for the first time an athlete-led content creation project at the championship.

For the project, EHF partnered with the digital unit of HBS, a wholly owned subsidiary of Infront Sports & Media, the EHF’s long-standing media and marketing partner. HBS had previously delivered similar projects for the FIFA Women’s World Cup and the World Badminton Federation.

“Female athletes don’t always get the recognition they deserve, despite their incredible achievements. This project is about changing that, by giving athletes the chance to share their personal stories and build stronger connections with their audience, all while growing their own personal brand,” said Ioana Patachi, Digital Content Manager at the European Handball Federation.

More than a dozen players were onboarded to the project, producing content in the lead-up to the championship to build excitement and hype up the fans as well as during the tournament to offer insights into the players’ life and preparations.

The goal of HBS and EHF was to capture the players’ stories and personalities without disrupting their focus. It was ensured that the content creation process fitted seamlessly into the players’ schedule.

The onboarding process guaranteed that the players did not have to worry about technical details. All what was eventually needed were the recording of short, personal clips according to ideas discussed or driven by the players’ own creativity. Here, the players could be as casual or crazy as they liked – it was all about showing personality and giving fans a look behind the scenes.