A quarter-century after its creation, the single currency has never been so popular. Across the 20 countries that make up the eurozone, 83% of citizens support it while 14% are opposed, according to the Eurobarometer survey conducted every six months by the European Commission. In 2002, when euro banknotes and coins were first introduced, support hovered around 65%, while 25% were against it. This broadly favorable opinion, which weakened during the eurozone crisis, has steadily increased since 2016.
A blog post by the European Central Bank (ECB), published on Monday, November 10, examined this trend. It shows that nearly all countries have seen a rise in support for the euro. Particularly dramatic increases (over 20 percentage points) were recorded in Spain, Portugal and Cyprus. The populations of these countries, which were deeply affected by the crisis of the 2010s, appear to have concluded that belonging to the single currency is ultimately a source of structural strength.
“Research suggests that attitudes toward the euro may increasingly reflect its practical benefits rather than its symbolic meaning,” the authors noted. They cited the eurozone crisis, the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine as three times when the strength of the single currency became clear to citizens.
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