Festivities underway in host cities
Early Euro 2008 festivities have passed without incident in the four Swiss host cities ahead of the start of the championship.
Thousands of people turned out for concerts at newly built fan zones in Basel, Bern, Geneva and Zurich on Friday despite regular bouts of rain.
Bern officials said there were 15,000 additional people on the capital’s streets but it had seemed calmer than an average weekend. Basel, Geneva and Zurich police reported no serious problems during the preliminary celebrations.
Around 10,000 Czech fans are due and up to 30,000 supporters from Turkey.
Basel airport is expecting a record number of travellers on Saturday, with around 23,000 fans due to arrive in the city by air.
Ahead of the opening match, a government reception was held in Bern for 150 prominent figures including Austrian President Heinz Fischer, European Commission President José Manuel Barroso and Michel Paltini, head of Uefa, European football’s governing body.
The match kicks off at St Jakob’s Park stadium after a 13-minute opening ceremony, and will be followed by the Turkey-Portugal encounter in Geneva.
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