Matchroom is delighted to announce the European Open Pool Championship will return to the City of Fulda in Germany for the next three years with Pool’s leading promoter set to create a Festival of Pool in Thorsten Hohmann’s hometown in partnership with local government Fulda Die Sportstadt and the Deutsche Billard-Union.
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After the success of the inaugural European Open back in August, the 2023 Major will take place at Hotel Esperanto, Fulda from August 8-13 2023 with player entries set to open on Monday, 3 October at 2 pm UK time and spectator tickets from Friday, 7 October to Matchroom Pool Club Members.
The agreement will see the City, Federation, and local club SG Johannesberg benefit from Matchroom’s global exposure both digitally and linearly thanks to the sprawling TV coverage and over one million followers across social media in a partnership with the aim of growing pool and Fulda being the very heart of it as the home of the European Open.
As part of this, SG Johannesberg will run a German-only qualifier alongside the Deutsche Billard-Union with fans set to experience a unique festival-like atmosphere not only at the venue but across the city with special ticket packages set to be announced allowing access to not only the tournament but Fulda’s most loved attractions. Matchroom has also pledged to donate tournament equipment to the City to help push the sport further.
Player entries will open on Monday, 3 October with the entry fee only $250 for the 256 double-elimination tournament that was taken down by Albin Ouschan in 2022 against World Champion Shane Van Boening for a slice of the $200,000 prize fund.
Specator tickets will start from €15 per session with fans also given the opportunity to purchase a weekend pass to see all the weekend action for €40 or a season pass to enjoy every minute of the action for only €95.
Major Oberbürgermeister/Lord Mayor Dr. Heiko Wingenfeld of Fulda: “I am delighted to hear that the European Open is to remain in Fulda. We are very happy with the outcome of the European Open event, not least because it was the first time that the event has been held at all and the first time it was held at this venue. The feedback from both players and fans was extremely positive.”
“We look forward to welcoming the players and fans to Fulda, the hometown of Thorsten Hohmann, in the coming three years. We are sure that we will play host to some very exciting events featuring the world’s best pool players and witnessed by numerous fans. Fans watching the events live and in person or via their TVs at home will see that Fulda is an attractive city where sport is really lived.”
The President of the Deutsche Billard-Union Helmut Biermann said: “As the federation with by far the largest number of active pool players in Europe, we followed Matchroom’s first pool event in Germany with interest. After the overwhelming success of the first European Open, we are now pleased that after a short open dialogue with Matchroom we have. We have managed to set up a fruitful co-operation for the future. We look forward to the challenge of working with such a respected partner for our mutual benefit and for the further progress of billiards in the future.”
Matchroom Multi Sport Managing Director Emily Frazer said: “We cannot wait to return to Fulda for not only next year but at least until 2025. The crowds came out in their droves over the six days to support the players new and old competing in the first international major pool tournament to hit Germany in over 30 years.”
“We strongly believe with thanks to the support of the Lord Mayor Heiko Wingenfeld, the Deutsche Billard-Union, and Hotel Esperanto, Fulda we can grow this event from strength to strength in the heart of Germany. I am so excited to see what we can continue to grow.”
目標打造頂級9號球盛宴 富爾達將承辦未來三年歐洲公開賽
Matchroom公司很高興地宣佈，德國富爾達市將在未來三年繼續承辦9號球歐洲公開賽。在未來三年合作期間，Matchroom公司將與富爾達當地的體育城和德國協會通力協作，著力在賽事舉辦地暨9號球名將 Thorsten Hohmann 的家鄉富爾達市打造出9號球領域的盛會。
繼今年8月的首屆歐洲公開賽成功舉辦後，2023年歐洲公開賽也定檔於2023年8月8日至13日在富爾達的Esperanto酒店舉辦。10月3日開放球員報名通道，10月7日率先向Matchroom的9號球會員開售觀賽門票。
Matchroom公司將攜其全球廣度的數位媒體、超百萬的電視和社交媒體觀眾的優勢與富爾達市政府、德國協會及富爾達當地俱樂部 SG Johannesberg 一起，立足富爾達市，以歐洲公開賽為契機，為發展9號球運動而同心戮力。
作為歐洲公開賽的一部分，SG Johannesberg 將與德國協會一起舉辦僅面向德國球員開放的預選賽。屆時球迷們不僅可以在比賽場館體驗到賽事的熱烈氛圍，更可以在整個富爾達市感受到獨特而又盛大的體育狂歡節的氣氛。通過購買特別通門票，球迷們在觀看比賽之餘還可以免費參觀富爾達市最受歡迎的旅遊景點。此外，Matchroom公司還承諾向富爾達市捐贈比賽器材，以進一步推動9號球運動在當地的發展。
首屆歐洲公開賽決賽，Albin Ouschan 擊敗2022年世錦賽冠軍 Shane Van Boening 奪冠，賽事總獎金高達20萬美元。2023年歐洲公開賽的球員報名將於10月3日 (台北時間晚上10點) 開始，報名費為250美元。門票售價每場15歐元起，週末通票為40歐元，購買95歐元的全場通票即可收看整屆比賽。
富爾達市市長 Heiko Wingenfeld 博士說：“得知歐洲公開賽將繼續在富爾達舉辦，我們對此榮幸之至。考慮到我市和 Esperanto酒店都是首次承辦此類比賽，我們對首屆歐洲公開賽的成功舉辦非常滿意，球員和球迷的回饋也都非常積極。”
“未來三年我們會一如既往的歡迎球員和球迷來到 Thorsten Hohmann 的家鄉 — 富爾達市。我們相信，在無數球迷的殷殷期待下，我們有能力繼續舉辦由世界頂級高手參加的高水準賽事。無論是親臨現場的球迷亦或在家中通過電視觀看賽事的球迷，他們都將看到一個美麗無限的富爾達市，一個在生活中充滿了體育氣息的運動之城。”
德國協會主席 Helmut Biermann 表示說：“作為迄今為止在歐洲地區擁有最多活躍美式運動員的協會，我們對Matchroom公司在德國舉辦的首場9號球賽事充滿興趣。在首屆歐洲公開賽取得巨大的成功之後，我們很高興能夠與Matchroom公司進行了簡短而有效的公開對話。經過雙方的努力，我們已經成功地為未來達成了一項富有成效的合作。我們期待著與像Matchroom公司這樣受人尊敬的夥伴合作，為我們的共同利益的達成和9號球運動的未來發展帶來挑戰。”
Matchroom Multi Sport 首席執行官 Emily Frazer 說：“我們無比期待在未來三年間繼續回到富爾達辦賽。在為期六天的比賽中，我們看到成群結隊的觀眾來到現場，與新老球員一起享受三十多年來首次在德國舉辦的大型9號球賽事。”
“我們堅信，在富爾達市市長 Heiko Wingenfeld 先生、德國協會和 Esperanto酒店的支援下，我們可以將這項賽事發展得越來越好。我非常期待看到未來發展的盛景。”