This is the way football should be. A true celebration of the beautiful game. During the three weeks of Euro 2008, Swiss,Turkish, Spanish, Portugese, German, French, Russian, Dutch and other nationalities all congegrated in the UBS Arena in Nyon.

Not once did I see any violence, any problems, or confrontations. All I saw was a healthy respect for each other’s country.

The arena was not just a place for fans, it was also a place where parents could feel comfortable about bringing their children too.

There were days when the downpours made the atmosphere more subdued; on others the fans cheered on in baking heat. Plenty of beer was drunk on the hot nights but there never seemed to be any over-drunkenness.

Some evenings saw the arena packed; at other times there were not many folk, but throughout it all there was a spirit of bonhomie. There was collective sighing and booing at the referees, frustration at missed shots and sheer joy when goals were scored.      

After matches the crowd often congregated around the railway station and it became a noisy, but fun place to be. The police were there but kept a healthy distance, with an eye on it all whilst smiling at the fun. The law about the tooting of car horns was completely ignored, they just let the fans celebrate. If there were any problems, I didn’t see any any. What I did see impressed me enormously.

The Spanish fans were in joyous mood last night around Nyon but those whose team didn’t make it still got in their cars to wave flags and be part of the celebrations. A fitting way for a town that has the headquarters of UEFA along its lakeside.

This is how football should be. The football fans of Nyon should be proud of themselves. 

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