Elsewhere, managers might choose to turn a blind eye to people following the game on their devices, or rig up a large screen in the workplace, allowing employees to watch the match while at work.
While well-intentioned, the gesture could create a backlash if not everyone at the organisation is interested in football, or indeed the England team.
Read more: Can you watch the women’s World Cup at work?
For some, an international tournament such as the Euros is a festival of football, where every match is enthusiastically discussed at length. For others, the sport’s association with boorish, laddish culture can make it an automatic turn-off.
Sport – whether it’s football, rugby or athletics – can create a sense of togetherness and shared interest unlike any other. But only if people are inclined to participate in the first place.
The following ideas can help organisations use the Euros as a catalyst for inclusive, meaningful and empathetic team-building, while avoiding any potential problems along the way:
- Embrace multiculturalism, not just the national team’s results or iconic sports people. Share when different countries’ matches are being televised/streamed, and how employees located across different time zones can watch them.
Read more: How to tackle the World Cup in the workplace
- Circulate a reminder about the organisation’s social media policies to ensure that accounts, which may be associated with the business, aren’t used to share personal views, which may be considered inappropriate by others, on tournaments, results of matches or events.
- Clearly communicate expected standards of behaviour, particularly if alcohol consumption is involved, for example, no aggressive language, rules around displaying national flags, chants, songs, etc.
- Run a light-hearted sweepstake, to encourage involvement, and align people to support different countries and sportspeople.
- Extend the opportunity provided by ‘2024’s summer of sport’ by giving equal consideration to other sporting activities that are important to employees, for example, by allowing parents to attend school sports days as an alternative to watching a match/event.
- Embrace the togetherness that sport can bring by following a tournament or event for its entire duration, not just until the national team or office favourite is knocked out.
Read more: Employers should embrace sporting events
- Remember that being a gracious winner is akin to being an empathetic manager by saluting winners – irrespective of what country they represent. This could take the form of a shout-out on social (internal or external) channels or laying on food-related treats from the country of the winning team.
- There’s more to sport than just football. With both Wimbledon under way and the Olympics around the corner, replicate the company’s approach to football to other high-profile events.
Finally, sport is intended to be enjoyed by spectators and players alike; keeping activities fun, light-hearted and inclusive will help achieve a sense of an engagement across the organisation.
By Daniel Gualdino, senior people scientist, Culture Amp
