The "No" vote on the UBS Arena in Winterthur makes little difference for Publisuisse

There will be no UBS Arena in Winterthur during Euro 08. This was decided by voters last Sunday. The referendum will have little effect on the services offered by Publisuisse, which markets the arenas throughout Switzerland. "Of course, the UBS Arena in Winterthur will be removed from the regional portfolio. But the prices for the national packages will remain the same," explains Manuela Gerber, Project Manager Euro 2008 at Publisuisse. "We continue to assume that we can guarantee our customers at least 1.5 million spectators with the overall package of all arenas. We should be able to achieve this even without Winterthur". Publisuisse is therefore refraining from lowering prices. The marketer describes the 1.5 million mark as a "worst-case scenario"; in the best-case scenario, it estimates that 2.5 million spectators will be reached. The Winterthur arena could have accommodated 8,000 to 10,000 fans. With the loss of this arena, UBS will now not have an arena in the Zurich area. Organizer disappointed The organizer of the UBS Arena, the Biel-based agency Perron 8, is naturally not happy with the decision of the people of Winterthur: "We are naturally disappointed with the decision of the Winterthur voters. We pushed ahead with the project together with the city of Winterthur right up to the end. But we live in a democracy and have to accept the decision," says Reto Bloesch, media manager of event organizer Perron8. "There are always individual groups that oppose such projects. We take the whole thing in good sporting spirit." With the elimination of the Winterthur Arena, there will now be 16 broadcasting locations.
PdA referendum leader Peter Berger cited the growing unease among the population about the commercialization of sport as the reason for the clear rejection of the Winterthur Euro 2008 loan. "Many people are enthusiastic about football, but don't think much of the commercial exploitation of the sport," said Berger.
Bloesch, on the other hand, sees the reasons primarily at a communication level: "There were some misunderstandings. There was a widespread feeling in Winterthur that the whole thing was a project by some large corporation pursuing commercial interests. But the idea for the arenas came from the Swiss Confederation and is being organized by Perron8. The sole aim is to make Euro 08 a unique event, a festival for the people."
Adrian Schräder, Carole Scheidegger