Promotional campaign of Slovenian tourism at EuroBasket 2022

This year's European Championship is a unique opportunity to promote Slovenia as a boutique tourist destination for active outdoor holidays and as an excellent destination for the training of top athletes. On this occasion, the STB, in collaboration with Basketball Federation of Slovenia and partners of the Slovenian tourism industry, prepared a number of activities to promote Slovenia and the I FEEL SLOVENIA brand.

One of the most high-profile international sports events this autumn is the European Men's Basketball Championship, which will take place between September 1 and 18 in four countries - Germany, Italy, Georgia and the Czech Republic. In the group stage, which will take place in Cologne and later also in Berlin, the Slovenian national team will play against the national teams of France, Hungary, Lithuania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and the hosts Germany.

Slovenia won the title of the 2017 EuroBasket champions, which put the team into the spotlight all around the world. This year's European Championship, the world sports public is focused on the Slovenian national team, which consists of the key heroes of the Slovenian EuroBasket fairy-tale from 2017. Among them is certainly Luka Dončić, with whom the Slovenian Tourist Board (STB) has built a strong partnership in the promotion of Slovenia as a tourist destination.

On this occasion, MSc. Maja Pak, director of the Slovenian Tourist Board, commented: "Slovenian athletes are building excellent foundations for the promotion of Slovenia with their performances at the biggest world and European competitions. By partnering with the Basketball Federation of Slovenia for the EuroBasket 2022 championship in Germany, the Slovenian Tourist Board is upgrading sports achievements by communicating and strengthening Slovenia's visibility as a green tourist destination for active outdoor holidays and as an excellent destination for trainings and preparations of the athletes. An essential part of the partnership is mutual communication on digital channels, fan branding and a business event in Cologne on September 5. We are pleased to start communication on digital channels at the start of the championship with a special video invitation to Slovenia. We recorded it with the members of the basketball team and the acrobatic group Dunking Devils, who invite you to the homeland of the current European basketball champions through top-quality video clips and attractive acrobatic actions with basketball players. With these activities, we are strengthening the visibility of Slovenia as a tourist destination and the I FEEL SLOVENIA brand, building new partnerships and raising the profile of Slovenian tourism in key markets, among which German has been one of the leading ones for many years."

Matej Erjavec, President of the Basketball Federation of Slovenia, highlighted: "We are grateful to have strengthened the partnership with the STB and that we will be able to promote Slovenia at the most high-profile international sports event this autumn, where our team has high ambitions. Right so, we are happy that the Basketball Federation of Slovenia will, with the help of the STB, continue the function of an ambassador of Slovenia, which we have been performing for many years. I also believe that our partnership with the I Fell Slovenia brand will successfully continue also in the future."

On the evening of the basketball spectacle, a business meeting of the Slovenian and German tourism industry

The largest country among the four hosts of EuroBasket 2022 is Germany, which is one of Slovenia's most important tourism and economic partners. German tourists traditionally represent the largest share of foreign tourists in Slovenia, who, when choosing their holiday destination, attach great importance to sustainability, outdoor activities and authentic experiences in the embrace of nature. With their travel habits, German tourists are among the most desired by Slovenian tourism providers, as they appreciate the quality of tourist products, the diversity of the tourist offer. They are also environmentally conscious and look for a sustainable offer. German tourist flows are extremely important for Slovenia, especially thanks to proximity and good connections with the largest German cities. Last year, German tourists accounted for 22% of tourist overnight stays in Slovenia, and in the first seven months of this year 16.5%, which ranks them in first place among foreign tourists in Slovenia.

On September 5, 2022, on the evening of the match between the current European champion Slovenia and the hosting Germany, the STB will organize a business meeting of the Slovenian and German tourism industry. At the event, the head coach of the Slovenian basketball team, Aleksander Sekulić, will also speak about the importance of sports for the development of tourism, along with other distinguished guests from tourism and sports. The event will be attended by representatives of German tourism companies, sports clubs, media and German regional authorities.

More than 500 Slovenian fans will cheer for the Slovenian basketball team in Germany

EuroBasket 2022 will also be coloured Slovenian with a help of exceptional Slovenian fans. Kompas, Slovenian tour operator and an official partner of the Basketball Federation of Slovenia (KZS), will organize a Slovenian fan center in Cologne in cooperation with the STB, which will take care of the I feel Slovenia branding. Events on the competition days will also be accompanied by concerts by Slovenian musicians.

The STB also provided I FEEL SLOVENIA fan shirts, clappers and scarves for the fans traveling to Cologne.

Sport fans of Slovenia platform marked by basketball and volleyball in September

This summer, the STB launched the Sport fans of Slovenia online platform, which connects current sports events and the most successful Slovenian sports teams, athletes and fans. For fans, virtual fan props are also available in GIF collections on Instagram and special filters for Instagram stories, which can be found under the keyword Fans of Slovenia. At the end of the summer, the virtual fan atmosphere will be marked by the volleyball world championship, where the Slovenian volleyball team is fighting for the top places, and the European basketball championship, where the Slovenian national team is defending the gold medal from 2017.

NEW Video: "Slovenia, the homeland of European Basketball Champions"

Communication on the STB's digital channels at the start of the championship has been launched with a special video invitation to Slovenia. It was filmed with the members of the basketball team and the Dunking Devils acrobatic group, who with top-quality videos and attractive acrobatic actions with the basketball players invite guests to the land of the EuroBasket champions.

Sports tourism is the main communication topic in 2022 and 2023

In 2022 and 2023, the Slovenian Tourist Board has defined sports tourism as the main communication theme, when even more attention is given to the promotion and development of this important and at the same time promising tourist product of Slovenian tourism. International sports events in Slovenia and abroad are extremely important from the point of view of promotion, also thanks to Slovenian athletes, who impress with their success and strengthen the global visibility of Slovenia.

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