Euro 2012 versus ‘Game of Thrones’: When football and fantasy collide

Perhaps I’ve been watching far too much medieval fantasy but I couldn’t help noticing the similarities between the BBC’s promotional advert for Euro 2012 and the title sequence of HBO’s Game of Thrones.

Both take the viewer on a tour across different ‘kingdoms’ from a swooping bird’s eye perspective as buildings spring up. While the kingdoms in the Game of Thrones opening correspond to the fictional locations in the series, the Euro 2012 promo visits the different nations that are competing in the tournament.

Funnily enough, the Euro 2012 promo also features a two-headed dragon catching a football while in the world of Game of Thrones dragons actually exist. A number of other creatures such as lions and birds also appear in the Euro 2012 advert to represent the various countries, similarly the house sigils, Game of Thrones speak for ’signs’, are seen in the title sequence. Towards the end there is a crest/shield to tie the whole sequence together and prepare the viewer for ‘battle’.

Finally, each of these videos is accompanied by a grand orchestral score of epic proportions to highlight the magnitude and drama involved. Who said they weren’t any similarities between football and medieval fantasy?

The BBC promo for Euro 2012:

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The opening sequence to Game of Thrones:

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• http://www.facebook.com/daviddavid43 David Jackson

  David Icke would be interested in the Dragon connection, but I don’t see too many similarities to be honest in the Game of Thrones..maybe you have a hidden agenda with the BBC?

• http://www.facebook.com/shea.bethell Shea Bethell

  Oh my gosh… Don’t you have anything more important to do? Like, lets say, watching paint dry or going to a Lady Gaga concert?

• DesperateMeasures

  Utter tripe.

• VicTheBrit

  While some BBC execs love the ponderous (pompous?) sweep of their coverage of world events – remember that old voice-over for the 9 o’clock news?, the Game of Thrones intro actually tells you something of the episode – which ‘thrones’ are appearing in tonight’s episode…