XTV scores with Uefa final titles

XTV has created a title sequence and TV sponsorship package for this year’s Uefa Cup [football] Final, which airs on 8 May on BBC2.

XTV, which was paid £45 000 for the work, was appointed in February by the European Broadcasting Union and Uefa, following an unpaid five-way creative pitch against European competition.

Uefa is keen to develop its brand to mirror the strong identity enjoyed by the Champions League in recent years, says XTV executive producer Richard Markell. ‘They wanted a dynamic evolution rather than a revolution, but we’ve gone a bit further than that,’ he says.

It is understood that the consultancy has suggested Uefa press broadcasters to use the sequence for the next couple of years, implementing it throughout the competition and not just for the final. Negotiations begin following this year’s final.

The 35-second sequence presents a series of animating discs representing the 145 clubs who start the competition, says Markell. The discs decrease as the sequence progresses to reflect the knockout nature of the Uefa cup. As the discs collide, live action sequences of chosen footballers are shown.

‘We wanted to emphasise that the competition is more populist, for the simple reason that lower clubs in each country can get a Uefa cup place. You find unfashionable clubs like Ipswich coming up against Champions League rejects in the later rounds of the competition,’ says Markell.

XTV has also created a title sequence and sponsor package for coverage of the Uefa Super Cup in August, which employs a blue bias rather than the gold colourisation of the UEFA titles, says Markell.

Members of the XTV creative team achieved a ‘double’ this season, having also designed the onand off-screen package for the Champions League while at sister company Red Pepper ID.