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Scaling new heights Alpine rivals bid to re-kindle former gloriesPosted: Tuesday December 03, 2002 11:12 AMVIENNA (Reuters) -- Two days before Christmas in 1917, when most of Europe was engulfed in World War One, Austria and Switzerland met each other for the first time in a soccer international. Austria won 1-0. The day after Christmas, Switzerland gained revenge with a 3-2 win -- and so was born a friendly rivalry between the two Alpine neighbors which reached its competitive peak in the highest-scoring World Cup match of all time. Austria's 7-5 win over Switzerland in the 1954 World Cup quarterfinal in Lausanne has a lasting place in the history books. Now the two nations are looking to write a new chapter in their joint soccer rivalry and friendship. That 1954 match is arguably the only one ever between the two sides to capture the imagination of the wider footballing fraternity as, apart from the 1930s when Hugo Meisl's "Wunderteam" threatened to win the World Cup itself, Austrian and Swiss soccer has largely been confined to the also-rans' section of club and international competition. That could change in 2008 if their joint bid to stage the European championship is successful. Their teams might have to improve considerably on the field to reach the later stages of the competition but there is no doubt the infrastructure will be first class. Just gaining the tournament would represent the biggest success for soccer in Switzerland -- and Austria for that matter -- since the World Cup finals staged by the Swiss almost half a century ago. Austrian's golden footballing era was in the 1930s, when Meisl's side ruled European football with top player Matthias Sindelar, known as the "Paper Man" on account of his waif-like yet elegant appearance. But the sport fell into decline after the annexation of Austria by Adolf Hitler's Third Reich in 1934. Economic hardship took its toll on spectator numbers and many promising players and officials were persecuted because of their Jewish roots. The team bounced back in the 1950s but Austria has never qualified for the European championship, although it has started the 2004 qualifying programme brightly. Qualifying for 2004 and hosting 2008 would be the ideal way for Austria to regain much lost esteem. Switzerland, too, probably needs to win the right to stage the event to compete in the finals. Although Switzerland regularly played in the World Cup from the 1930s until 1966, it has reached the finals only once in the 36 years since then -- and reached the European championship only once in 1996. A small soccer country with a small top division, Switzerland's teams rarely shine in European competition, although Basel has done well this season to become the first Swiss side to reach the second phase of the Champions League. The success of Basel is also sparking a revival of fortunes for Koebi Kuhn's national side. Basel coach Christian Gross has forged a hard-running, attacking team and while it is unlikely to reach the last eight of the competition this season, it has gained respect with excellent performances against Liverpool and Valencia. Gross said: "We have had a very good year here and so has the full national team. We are certainly raising the profile of Swiss football." Winning the 2008 bid would do that even more. Austrians, Swiss hopeful of reaching the mountain topBASEL, Switzerland (Reuters) -- If UEFA was to decide where to hold the European championship in 2008 on the basis of hotels, communications, rail links and enthusiasm then the joint bid from Austria and Switzerland would be the favorite contender. But as UEFA proved when it awarded the 2004 finals to Portugal -- there is a lot more to it than that. In 1999 UEFA saw an opportunity to give Portuguese soccer a huge boost by awarding the 2004 finals to Portugal rather than Spain, the hot favorite -- and the fear gnawing away at officials of the Austria-Switzerland bid is that UEFA could do the same thing again. Friedrich Stickler, the new president of the Austrian FA told Reuters: "I know we have the best bid and I know that we can deliver everything UEFA wants on time and to their total satisfaction. "But there is always a doubt. We are taking nothing for granted and will work hard until the last possible moment to convince them our bid is the best one. It is now or never. I don't think we can make it a better bid than it is. I just hope it is what UEFA are looking for." That really is the only chink in an outstanding candidature planned meticulously by the Swiss and Austrians who admit that despite the similarities between their countries -- small, central European, Alpine nations who mainly share a German language -- they have learnt much from working together. "When we bid in 2004 with Hungary, the bid was not perhaps as watertight as this one is," added Stickler. "I think we learned a lot from that bid, we have learnt a lot from working with the Swiss -- and now we are ready." Close to you Their "Close to You" campaign emphasises that being in the heart of Europe will make the tournament easily accessible to fans from around the continent. They also stress they have the police and security expertise to deal with any undesirables who plan to exploit that opportunity. One positive point in the bid's favor was the success of the European Under-21 Championship in Switzerland earlier this year. Unprecedented crowd figures of 175,000 were recorded for the tournament, when organizers had expected a total attendance figure in the region of just 60,000. "The spectator interest far exceeded the expectations," said Peter Gillieron, general secretary of the Swiss football federation. "It was an overpowering result. We wanted a faultless tournament to help the application of the Austria and Switzerland bid for Euro 2008. It was our goal of showing the European soccer family that Switzerland is capable of hosting the tournament." Each nation will provide four host cities -- Basel, Berne, Geneva and Zurich in Switzerland and Salzburg, Vienna, Innsbruck and Klagenfurt in Austria -- with new, state-of-the-art venues proposed. Basel's 33,500-capacity St Jakobs Park will be used, while new 30,000-seater stadiums will be built in Zurich (Zurich Stadium) and Geneva (Stade de Geneve) and a new 40,000-capacity re-built national Stadium in Berne, on the site of the old Wankdorf Stadium, is due to be completed by 2004. In Austria, the Ernst Happel Stadium in Vienna, one of UEFA's five-star stadiums which has hosted five European Cup finals, will be further upgraded to a 53,000-capacity arena and would host the final. Innsbruck's New-Tivoli Stadium will be increased to hold 30,000, while new stadiums in Salzburg (Salzburg Stadium) and Klagenfurt (Waidmannsdorf-Neu Stadium) will both be upgraded to 30,000-all-seater grounds. All the new stadiums will be constructed and in use by 2006 at the latest. Organizational efficiency The bid is based more on the countries' reputation for organizational efficiency than on their mediocre footballing exploits. Both countries are wealthy and politically stable and relations are traditionally amicable if not particularly close. Trade links are well developed but this bid will be the first significant instance of non-economic cooperation between the neighbors. The Austrian government supports hosting the event, and the current sports minister has described the bid as "politically and economically very important for Austria." Austrian government press releases say Euro 2008 would create 6,600 jobs in Austria alone, mostly in construction, and the tourist industry would benefit from at least 300,000 people travelling to Austria for the event. The estimated costs of more than 110 million euros would be met partly through sponsorships by such Swiss financial powerhouses as Credit Suisse and Winterthur Insurance. Stickler is looking forward to reaching the top of this particular soccer obstacle. For a man who last year climbed to the top of Africa's highest peak Mount Kilimanjaro and this year scaled Mont Blanc, Europe's highest mountain, he knows how to face a challenge -- and is looking forward to reaching the mountain top again. Factbox:VENUES: The following eight venues are planned:
COST: The official bid presentation estimates the cost of the event at more than 110 million euros. FOOTBALL SET-UP: Austria -- The first official domestic league was set up in 1911, contested only by teams from Vienna, seven years after the foundation of the Austrian Football Association. It was not until 1949 that teams from outside Vienna were permitted to enter. More than 2,300 clubs exist with over 120,000 players registered throughout Austria. Switzerland -- Switzerland's Nationalliga was introduced in 1898, three years after the formation of the Swiss Football Association. The country boasts 1,451 clubs with more than 89,000 players. FOOTBALL HONORS: Austria: World Cup semifinals in 1934 and 1954; Olympic runner-up in 1936 and quarterfinals in 1912 and 1952; European championship quarterfinal in 1960. Switzerland: World Cup quarterfinals in 1934, 1938, 1954; Olympic runner-up in 1924; Knocked out of European championship at the first-round stage in 1964 and 1996. CLUBS: Austria: Austria's Bundesliga consists of 10 professional outfits. Switzerland: The Nationalliga has 12 professional teams with a further 12 teams, both amateur and professional, making up the country's second division. PREVIOUS HISTORY: Austria and Switzerland regularly host major winter sports international world championships and major events. In soccer, Switzerland hosted the 1954 World Cup finals and is home to both European football's governing body UEFA and FIFA, world football's governing body, as well as the International Olympic Committee. The country successfully hosted the European Under-21 Championship this year. The Ernst Happel stadium in Vienna has staged the 1964, 1987, 1990 and 1995 European Cup finals. Austria is famed for its ski runs in the Alps and regularly hosts World Cup events. POLITICAL SITUATION: Austria and Switzerland are amicable neighbors and close trade partners despite significant differences in their cultural and political heritage. Both countries have stable economies, excellent infrastructure and advanced tourist facilities. Both are neutral countries. Austria joined the European Union and NATO in 1995 and holds a seat on the United Nations. The Swiss public voted against joining the European Union in 1992 after a ballot. Switzerland, however, was admitted to the United Nations in 2002. In soccer terms, Austria missed out on a joint-bid with Hungary to host the 2004 European championship and opted to pair up with neigbor Switzerland for the 2008 tournament.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. |
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