China launched the emblem for the FIFA Women's World Cup 2007 Sunday, kicking
off preparations for the tournament, which will be held in China for the first
time since the inaugural World Cup in 1991.
China was designated as World Cup 2003 host but had to give up the
right at the last minute because of the threat of SARS. FIFA then promised China
the right to host the competition in 2007.
FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter was unable to attend the ceremony but sent a
congratulatory letter, saying the tournament is "returning to its roots".
Sixteen national teams including host China will join the finals starting on
September 10. The Cup's opener and final games are scheduled to be played in
Shanghai with four other cities - Chengdu, Wuhan, Tianjin and Hangzhou, selected
to host group stage games and play-offs.
FIFA's official emblem represents the spirit of global unity and
harmony of the FIFA Women's World Cup.
The logo incorporates FIFA's brand colours - dark
and light blue while an elegant brush stroke logo based on Chinese calligraphy
is depicted on an orange and yellow ground. The vivid curves, flowing movement
and upward spiral of the design are makes for a symbolic expression of the FIFA
Women's World Cup trophy.
With the FIFA Women's World Cup 2007 emblem, FIFA enters a
new era in the world of branding. The official event emblem is the
first symbol under the new FIFA brand design, which aims to unify all
the different emblems and logos of the world's governing football bodies, including the
12 competitions and projects such as GOAL, Fair Play and the FIFA Quality Concept for
footballs and artificial turf.
The main feature of this new branding strategy is a consistent
design for all FIFA activities. In addition, all FIFA tournaments will be called
"World Cup". The FIFA corporate logo featuring two globes is no longer a
component of any of the official emblems and will only be used for corporate
communication purposes.
Familiar faces back in town
A press conference was held at Shanghai's Pudong Shangri-La Hotel to welcome
several honored guests.. FIFA Director of Development Mary Harvey told FIFA.com
it felt great to come back to the country where she helped the US to win the
inaugural FIFA Women's World Cup back in 1991.