Search: ' La Liga'

Germany's victory at Euro '96 produced an unforseen reaction among some of those watching it at home, as Uli Hesse-Lichtenberger reports

I knew he was going to miss. The set-up was too perfect for him not to miss: An evening at Wembley with the tournament on the line. He had had one of his half-baked games, had received a yellow card that would bar him from the final – and the he was the captain. Perfect. There was no question Möller would live up to his image of the underachieving genius cracking under pressure. 

Read more…

Colin Moneypenny reports on the activities of the FSA during Euro'96 and questions the FA's claim that the tournament was well run

“So if you’re a football player how do you decide which country to play for – is it just the one which pays the most?” This was the genuine enquiry of one American caller – clearly a distant relative of Jack Charlton and surely a future FIFA President – at the FSA London Embassy during Euro ’96. 

Read more…

Saturday 1 Paul Gascoigne denies press stories that place him at the centre of the "high jinks" on the England tour plane, saying, "All the newspapers are going to be sued over this," Robbie Fowler, fingered instead as the main culprit, says, "Anyone claiming I was involved had better be prepared to go to court." They might bump into Terry while they're there.

Saturday 8 Venables responds to England's disappointing performance by giving the players two days off. "Relaxed players are happy players," he says, neglecting to add whether they are also good players. Press reaction to the 1-1 draw with Switzerland is predictably apocalyptic.

Monday 10 After protests from Scottish viewers, ITV will drop their Euro '96 signature tune, 'Jerusalem', when they cover Scotland games. They will also replace graphics showing the White Cliffs of Dover and Bobby Moore with the 1966 World Cup. Heritage Secretary Virginia Bottomley says the government would be prepared to use national lottery money to back a bid to bring the 2006 World Cup to England, or Britain (ie England plus Hampden and the new stadium in Cardiff) particularly if it might help the Conservatives stay in power. The FA will decide whether to bid by Christmas – it will take from then until 2006 to perfect a ticketing system guaranteed to annoy anyone wanting to pay to see a match.

Read more…

Why footballers are targeted by the media

Can you remember what you were doing on 28th May? If not, it’s no surprise because that must have been one of the most boring days in world history. How else to explain the fact that a report about the damage to an aeroplane carrying the England team back from their Far East tour should have made the second item on News at Ten that evening?

Read more…

The European Parliament is looking forward to Euro 96 almost as much as we are, according to Philip Cornwall 

There’s a language school in London offering English courses to overseas fans which has captured a few headlines recently; perhaps they could also try teaching the Met enough Dutch, German and French to help the thousands following the Netherlands and Switzerland to Euro ’96.

Read more…