The Archive

What are the expectations for the team?
Expectations remain reasonably low – a respectable group stage with qualification for the quarter-finals. Still, Greece’s amazing run in the qualifying tournament – ten wins out of 12 games, propelling them into eighth place in the FIFA rankings – has made everybody secretly wonder if lightning doesn’t really strike twice.

Are there any players who have appeared in TV commercials or other advertising?
Post-Euro 2004 super stardom opened the ad-money floodgates: Theo Zagorakis advertised bottled water (the aptly named Zagori water), Antonios Nikopolidis went for aluminium fittings, while coach Otto Rehhagel enlightened us on the benefits of eating processed meat products. Striker Angelos Charisteas probably landed the best deal, an orange juice commercial that was funny in a surprisingly self‑deprecating manner.

Is the coach popular?
Are you kidding? Last January Rehhagel was voted most popular man in Greece and that’s three-and-a-half years after he won Euro 2004. King Otto is not just popular, he’s untouchable. The news that he renewed his contract for another couple of years in March was greeted with universal enthusiasm.

Which players are good interviewees and who are the worst?
With 13 controversy-hungry daily sport papers in Athens alone, it’s not surprising that Greek footballers have perfected the art of speaking incessantly without actually saying anything. However, with Panathinaikos’s Ioannis Goumas and Georgios Karagounis, one tends to wonder if that effect is really produced on purpose. Not surprisingly, exiled Greeks are more interesting, albeit in a grumpy sort of way. Benfica’s Kostas Katsouranis has consistently produced the best quotes.

Will there be any rehearsed goal celebrations?
Actually the question is whether there will be any goals to celebrate at all. The Greek team is so defence-oriented that I suspect King Otto has explicitly forbidden any celebration rehearsals lest they give his players ideas. Hopefully, Karagounis will make up with his headless-chicken goal-celebration routine.

Are there any players involved in politics?
With Greek politics tinted, from one end of the spectrum to the other, by aggressive nationalism, it’s just as well that the footballers have so far kept their political views to themselves. Expect the odd “Macedonia is Greek” banner on the terraces, though.

What will be the media coverage be like ?
State TV, who hold the exclusive rights for the tournament, have not yet revealed their plans for Euro 2008, but we have every reason to believe they will, as always, adhere strictly to the Ceausescu school of objective reporting. Irrespective of whether they employ former players as auxiliary propagandists or not, hysterical jingoism will make up for poor journalism.

Will there be many fans travelling to the tournament?
Four years ago in Portugal, the team drew very impressive numbers of travelling fans and the same is expected to happen in Austria. The majority will travel from Greece, though the stupid wig-wearing, toga-clad, face-painted contingent will most probably hail from the diaspora centres of Germany. Ninety per cent of the songs date back to Euro 2004 and they’re so explicit in their celebration of the Greek male’s sexual prowess they will be ignored by TV commentators.

Paul Pomonis

What are the expectations for the team?
Most Swedes expect the team to get out of the group.

Are there any players who have appeared in TV commercials?
Fredrik Ljungberg, of course, was the face and body of Calvin Klein underwear for over two years and is now in a Pepsi advert with Ronaldinho, Frank Lampard and Lionel Messi. Anders Svensson is nicknamed Taco-Anders by opposing fans in the Allsvenskan after being in an advert for a company selling pizza, while Zlatan Ibrahimovic is now one of Nike’s hottest properties. It is a far cry from the start of his career when he was the face of Garnier Fructis, with the slogan: “You don’t think Zlatan has dandruff, do you?”

Is the coach popular?
Lars Lagerbäck is quite popular because he has taken Sweden to five consecutive major championships but is often criticised for the team’s negative approach. Remarkable, really, considering his achievements.

Which players are good interviewees and who are the worst?
Any journalist getting more than monosyllabic replies from Tobias Linderoth will have done really well. Mikael Nilsson is quite good and Ibrahimovic can be superb or awful depending on what mood he is in.

Do any of the players have famous girlfriends or wives?
Christian Wilhelmsson’s girlfriend, Oksana Andersson, is the most famous face at the moment. The Russian-Swedish model writes a blog about the couple’s life in Spain (he is on loan at Deportivo La Coruña) and has attracted a cult following (not necessarily because it is that good; one recent headline was “how nice it is with newly washed clothes”).

Are there any players involved in politics?
Not noticeably, but the current assistant coach, Roland Andersson, protested vehemently against the Argentinian junta before the 1978 World Cup. He threatened not to go to the tournament but in the end went and filmed everything he could concerning the regime.

What will be the media coverage be like?
Swedish Channel 4 has got the rights and their pundits are normally Magnus Hedman (ex-Coventry City) and Pontus Kåmark (ex-Leicester City). They are both good and professional – but nowhere near as popular as the former Sweden international Glenn Strömberg, who works for state channel SVT and will not be commentating on games this time around. The best newspaper columnist is, without a doubt, Aftonbladet’s Simon Bank.

Will there be many fans travelling to the tournament?
Loads of fans will travel, around 30,000 at the latest estimates. Sweden were voted Fans of the Tournament at the 2006 World Cup with the highlight being 55,000 Swedes in the Olympic Stadium in Berlin. 170,000 people applied for tickets. The two most popular songs are Vi är svenska fans allihopa (We are Swedish fans all of us) and In med bollen i mål (Put the ball in the goal).

Marcus Christenson

What are the expectations for the team?
Quarter-finals and then home. The usual.

Are there any players who have appeared in TV commercials or other advertising?
Square-jawed goalie Iker Casillas, whose preppy, school-prefect appearance never fails to attract the advertising companies, inevitably appears in some hands-related TV spots when a major competition looms. He has just insured his hands for €7.5m and the insurers, Groupama, have been quick to get out an ad in which he puts on the light with his nose, opens the door with his head, etcetera.

Which players are good interviewees and who are the worst?
Cesc Fábregas is marginally more tedious to listen to in English than in Spanish, which might have something to do with the fact that neither is his native language; Xabi Alonso comes over in all three of his languages as someone determined to avoid the prepackaged response; and Valencia’s David Villa is a straight talker, unusually frank and unafraid of upsetting the sponsors. Barça’s Carles Puyol has improved his diction over the years, but is still incapable of finishing a sentence without the word “no”.

Is the coach popular?
That depends on whether you are pro-Madrid or anti-Madrid. Those in favour of Raúl being excluded from the national side tend to be Catalans, Basques and any other awkward region who fail to buy in to the Iberian idea – and they have no problem with Luis Aragonés, despite his obvious madness. Those in favour of Raúl’s inclusion think that Aragonés is not only mad but the devil incarnate. And when all the noise dies down, Spain have managed to attain fourth place  in the FIFA rankings and 16 games undefeated without Raúl, which probably says something for Aragonés’s decision.

Are there any players with unusual hobbies or business interests?
Real Madrid’s Sergio Ramos is rumoured to be signing a deal with fashion house Dolce & Gabbana. Puyol still effects a pre-match psyche‑up routine using a potent mix of the Ramones and Napalm Death, whereas Liverpool’s Pepe Reina likes jewellery, Bang & Olufsen systems and grey Porsche Cayennes, all of which were nicked from his house while he was saving penalties against Chelsea in last year’s Champions League semi-final.

Will there be any rehearsed goal celebrations?
The squad is currently practising the complex mime sequence required by Swing Low Sweet Chariot. This is in acknowledgement of the Sky Sports campaign to encourage English subscribers to support Spain for the duration. The sport tabloid Marca, bemused by Sky’s initiative, remarked: “Why don’t the English support Croatia? It was they, after all, who did England the favour of showing them how crap they are.”

What will TV coverage be like?
Cable channels La Cuatro and Digital Plus have won the rights battle, which means that the non-subscribing public will be spared the idiosyncrasies of La Sexta’s Julio Salinas (ex-Barça) and the incomprehensible Kike, once of Atlético Madrid. Instead, so the rumour goes, Raúl has been signed up by La Cuatro – which should guarantee that everyone signs up to Digital Plus, featuring the indomitable Michael Robinson, who remains a cult figure in Spain.

Will there be many fans travelling to the tournament?
There was a national competition recently to supply lyrics for Spain’s wordless national anthem, the winner of which starts: “Long Live Spain! Let us all sing together with different voices.” You can’t quite see that one attracting the Catalan camp (whose minister of culture, incidentally, dismissed the song as “drivel”) or the travelling diehards, who are instead working on a version of Spain’s satirical entry for Eurovision 2008 in May, Baila el Chiki Chiki – a catchy ditty which stands much more chance of winning a trophy than does the national squad. According to his website, the legendary drummer Manolo will be going, of course, although last time he travelled to Germany his bar/museum in Valencia was ransacked.

Phil Ball

What are the expectations for the team?
The French public are pessimistic. Which is a good indicator that they’ll get to the final at least, previous low expectations having been recorded in 1998 and 2006. Ten years on, four players from the 1998 World Cup squad – Patrick Vieira, Lilian Thuram, David Trezeguet and Thierry Henry – could all take part. If picked, Nicolas Anelka, another player from 1998 generation, will be looking to score his first goal in a major international competition. There is some optimism surrounding the new generation represented by Hatem Ben Arfa, Samir Nasri and Karim Benzema – all three tipped as the next Zidane – as well as “Kaiser Franck” Ribéry.

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What are the expectations for the team?
Very low, ever since the draw was made and they got the hardest opponents in the other three pots. Nobody really expects them to get past the first round, although the media are trying to big-up their chances. A recent 3-0 friendly win over Russia has fed this nascent “we could do it” hype.

Are there any players who have appeared in TV commercials or other advertising?
Adi Mutu has become so ubiquitously Beckhamesque that it is more which products can hitch themselves to the Mutu brand rather than the other way around. After his coke bust (when, ironically, he was the Romanian face of Pepsi) he vanished temporarily, but his subsequent rehabilitation at Fiorentina has seen him return to seemingly all billboards and TV screens. The rest of the squad appear, en masse, in a beer commercial and that’s about their lot.

Is the coach popular?
Yes, with reservations. Having got them to the finals, Victor Piturca’s position is fairly strong, but there are doubters who question the style of play. Three crushing defeats could see him gone.  

Which players are good interviewees and who are the worst?
Cosmin Contra is pretty good. Mutu and Cristian Chivu are well practised in the modern footballing art of being bland yet doing so in a seemingly friendly way. The players who have never played outside Romania are the ones who could go either way – the amusing emotional outburst or the nonsensical ramble.

Will there be any rehearsed goal celebrations?
I think most people would be elated if the team just managed to score a goal.  The team included. I expect a joyful bundle by the corner flag rather than anything more choreographed. Unless it’s Mutu, who doesn’t really seem to get on with the rest of the team and looks down on them somewhat (in which case there will be a joyful bundle of all the other players while Adi runs around seeking out the cameras).

Are there any players involved in politics?
Not as yet, but many old pros and various members of the higher echelons of Romanian football are mostly, it seems, on the far right. So the longer this bunch stay out the better.

What will be the media coverage be like?
Gheorghe Hagi will be interviewed at every opportunity, but he hasn’t yet been snapped up by any one TV station. Horia Ivanovici, presenter of the popular Fanatik show, was recently taken to court by Piturca for demanding large sums of money to go easy on him on his popular TV show. Piturca was backed up by various others including Chivu, who said that ever since refusing to pay off Ivanovici while still at Ajax, he’s consistently been slammed on the show.  

Will there be many fans travelling to the tournament?
Romania’s current economic boom, its accession to the EU (meaning easier travel) and the fact that this tournament is relatively close means that there will be a fair few travelling fans, probably more than there ever have been following Romania at a major tournament before. The chants are Mooooooooo-Toooooooo.

Andy Hockley