Bono and The Edge teamed up with DJ Martin Garrix for a virtual performance to kick off the Euro 2020 championships in Rome on Friday evening, while Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli sang unofficial football anthem Nessun Dorma.
The U2 stars and Garrix sang the official tournament song We Are The People, which saw Bono appear as a hologram in Stadio Olimpico ahead of the Italy and Turkey match.
The performance, which Uefa says was themed around a real-life live stadium gig, weaved the song's lyrics of "hope and positivity" with "powerful imagery brought to life by technology", saw the pitch transformed into a blue-white flame, energy fields created from millions of light particles, and Bono projected on to the stage.
It was filmed in state-of-the-art motion-control studios in London, and at the Olimpico, to recreate the stadium environment in 3D.
Bono, The edge, and martin garrix for opening euro 2020 pic.twitter.com/L4daRoNG2O
— v (@vforverino) June 11, 2021
The Euros, which were postponed for a year due to the pandemic, will see 24 countries battle it out for the right to be crowned the continent’s best.
