By DPA
Berne : Hotels in the four Swiss cities set to host Euro 2008 football are almost all booked up with two months still to go. There are just 31,000 hotel beds available for the hundreds of thousands of fans expected to travel to of Zurich, Berne, Geneva and Basel for the matches in June.
Berne tourism spokesman Bernhard Rhyn told the Swiss wire agency ATS/SDA: “In Berne the hotels are all booked up for match days.” The city has just 2,000 hotel rooms while between 60,000 and 120,000 guests are expected. The situation is similar in the other three cities.
Cruise ships moored in Basel for the football to accommodate more fans, have proved extremely popular. Organisers have a number of schemes in place, including temporary camp sites or Fancamps as well as rooms in private homes, to provide additional overnight accommodation for around 330,000 expected in the four cities. Only around 18,000 camp site places have been reserved so far, just a fraction of those available, with many expected to book at the last minute. A bed in the camp sites cost between 25 and 80 francs ($25 and $80.6).
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Huge salary offer for Vogts in Azerbaijan
Hamburg: Azerbaijan football officials have said that they were prepared to pay former Nigeria coach Berti Vogts a huge salary to take charge of their national team. A statement on the home website of the Azerbaijan football association said that they would be willing to pay one million for the development of football in their country.
Azerbaijan FA president Rovnag Abdullayev said that he did not want to talk about figures, nor did he want to talk about the currency. “But once the contract is signed, we will release the figure. We have nothing to hide,” he said. German Vogts, the 61-year-old World Cup winner who resigned as coach of Nigeria last month after the Super Eagles were knocked out of the African Cup of Nations at the quarter-final stage, confirmed that he had held a meeting with Azerbaijan officials, but denied that they had reached an agreement.
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Alcohol banned as Rome risks losing 2009 final
Milan: City authorities have prohibited the sale of alcoholic beverages in Rome’s central areas and around the Stadio Olimpico to prevent violence ahead of a Champions League game between Roma and visiting Manchester United.
ANSA reported that the ban is to begin Tuesday morning and last until after the end of the game. With about 4,000 English fans expected in the capital, police are trying to avoid the recurrence of clashes that recently marred Champions League games with Manchester and Real Madrid. William Gaillard, a spokesman for the UEFA, said during a Radio RAI show that the European ruling body could reconsider its choice of Rome as the site for the 2009 Champions League final.
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Capello lawyers refute obstructiveness claim
London: England football manager Fabio Capello’s lawyers has said that their client would be cleared of accusations he withheld information in a corruption trial. An Italian prosecutor plans to bring charges against Capello following allegations he withheld information in a corruption trial.
Capello is accused of having been evasive and obstructive while serving as a witness in the trial of six men who were accused of bullying players into signing for GEA World, a sports management firm. In that proceeding, he insisted that he never dealt with contracts or was aware of any pressure on players. “We are really surprised by the public prosecutor’s declaration,” the lawyer said.