Berlin, in the VIP box at the Olympic Stadium, July, 14th: it's the day of the 2024 European Championships final and Toni is personally responsible for waiting on the UEFA President. She is disgusted by the theatre that the corrupt football elite are putting on for themselves around a game which has been perverted by commercialism. In cinematic flashbacks, we experience Toni's story as she travels to different European cities. In her youth, she was on the cusp of making it as a professional herself. Suddenly a special Europol unit storms the scene and begins to arrest the entire leadership team. The suspects are accused of receiving bribes »in return for the sale of marketing rights in connection with the organisation of football tournaments«, according to the German Federal Ministry of Justice. Shortly before the start of the most important event in European football, the VIP box is almost empty. But who will preside over the official ceremony now? Who will represent UEFA? Who will present the trophy?
In the midst of the chaos, the now very intoxicated, watch-enthusiast UEFA boss decides to deploy his »new friend« Toni. Now she is to sit in the same place where Hitler once watched the Olympic Games, put on a happy face, and finally hand the trophy over to the victors. But she quickly realises that this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. After all, the eyes of the world are all on her. Together with amateur players and football fans in Berlin, Endgame 24 tells, through a mixture of film and theatre, a story of the love of the game and the (im)possibilities of overcoming the deep rifts between grassroots and commercialisation.
The project is funded by the Stiftung Fußball & Kultur EURO 2024 and the German Federal
Government and is an official contribution to the UEFA EURO 2024TM art and culture
programme.
