Euro 2008 is over (and Switzerland becomes once more a peaceful country)

Congratulations to Spain! The Spanish team was consistent all throughout the tournament, giving classy performances against Italy, Russia and Germany; a promising team that can aim higher now.

Euro 2008 is over and so are the 21 days of football craziness in Switzerland. It’s been a great success and has definitely encouraged Swiss children to play football and approach this wonderful game.
Unfortunately, our Swiss team hasn’t done too well but we can take pride in having Hakan Yakin as second topscorer (together with others) and with a general performance by a depleted team (without Frei, N’Kufo, Margairaz) that was more than satisfying.

Now is the time for politicians and administrators to state their thoughts, Samuel Schmid said: “Switzerland couldn’t have organised the event on its own. The partnership with Austria has worked and we’ve experienced an excellent football party.”

No serious incident hampered the event and, overall, it’s been more than satisfactory. A brunch at Swiss Beach on Danube ended it all (the lucky ones even got the opportunity of seeing the two presidents playing babyfootball!).

Heinz Fischer said: “Our countries haven’t reached the quarter-finals, but we’ve showed that together we could be good organisers and hosts.” Michel Platini has thanked the two countries for their effort.

Before the final Swiss Football Federation President, Ralph Zloczower had said:
“I’d like to fully return Friedrich Stickler’s compliments, because I too feel our co-operation could not have been better. I’m confident that we’re going to have an interesting and high-quality final this evening and it’s with a bit of sadness that by midnight tonight it will all be over, and UEFA EURO 2008™ in Austria and Switzerland will be a part of history. (…) “The images of the Dutch fans is something I will never forget. I would like to thank the public authorities for the help we’ve received. All the efforts have been worthwhile and we can be totally satisfied with what we’ve achieved.”

According to statistics 2.7 million people have visited Basel, Bern, Zurich and Geneva during the tournament. And even yesterday evening the fanzones were packed with fans!
Up to 45,000 fans were in Geneva, 40,000 in Bern and the fanzones of Basel (40,000) and Zurich (100,000) were obviously rich in the colours of the Mannschaft.
A funny announcement was broadcasted by the Swiss police because the Zurich fanzone was bursting with people: “If you’re in front of a TV stay there, you’re privileged!”

The following is an article from UEFA.com concerning Basel:

The semi-final between Germany and Turkey brought the curtain down on Basel’s UEFA EURO 2008™ involvement with some terrific memories being left behind.

Defining moment
Locals will not forget in a hurry the quarter-final between the Netherlands and Russia which saw 180,000 Dutch fans descend upon the city, and local councillor Hanspeter Weisshaupt said affectionately: “The ‘Oranjefest’ on Kasernenplatz and the Dutch parade to the stadium were unbeatable in terms of spontaneity, geniality, cheerfulness and a straightforward good atmosphere.”

Huge influx
UEFA EURO 2008™ brought an estimated one million visitors to Basel, with police officers from France, Germany and Switzerland combining to ensure that the tournament passed by without significant incident. “Not separating the supporters of different teams out and allowing them to follow the games and celebrate together proved the correct decision,” explained Weisshaupt.

Spotless streets
The 650 volunteers on duty in the city also played their part in creating a positive atmosphere throughout Basel while a remarkable clean-up operation every night after matches ensured that the streets remained spotless. Some 40 tonnes of waste were picked up in the hours following the Netherlands-Russia game, but tellingly there was no sign of any litter whatsoever by the following morning.

Transport success
The all-night operation extended to transport workers in the region too, and with 80 per cent of fans in the city taking full advantage of Basel’s public transport system, traffic congestion was never a problem. Even the huge spikes in traffic at the end of the quarter and semi-final games in the city did not cause any major problems, with transport policy proving a resounding success.

‘Exemplary behaviour’
The final night proved to be a celebration for everyone involved in the city’s hosting of the six games at the final tournament, and Weisshaupt himself stayed up late to enjoy the festival of football until the very last. “The fans once again displayed exemplary behaviour,” he said. “I sat until three in the morning on Marktplatz with German and Turkish fans and we celebrated together.”