It wouldn't be the same...without THE game!

No football tournament would be complete without the lads at EA Sports providing us with another version of their quality footy offerings to add to the games collection.

Uefa Euro 2008 is out and although that Pro Evolution nonsense seems the way to go these days with gameplayers out there I'll always be an EA Sports man. With this being the only officially licensed game of the tournament there's still a chance for you to lead a home nation to the big finals, and let's face it, this is the only way a Steve McClaren side is ever gonna get there.

The game features stunning lifelike graphics of all Europe's top players and is a faster-paced and more responsive version of the classic football games that EA produce. With an added twist of being able to add YOURSELF into the action and lead your country with the 'Captain your Country' feature this is the stuff that dreams are made of. Another quirky addition is interactive celebrations so no longer do you have to sit back and watch the videos roll you can create the cele of your choice.

If you want to tackle this classic game with a new twist click here to download the demo version. The game can be bought from great online games retailer Gameseek here on most formats including PS3, Xbox 360, PC, PS2 and PSP and at a competitive price.

Here's a quick glimpse of what you can expect from EA Sports latest offering courtesy of YouTube...




As they say on the tin...IT'S IN THE GAME!

The Contenders...Greece

Today we take a look at another of the Euro 2008 contenders and the holders of the title European Champions...

Greece

THE MANAGER...
Greece will be led into defending their trophy by German manager Otto Rehhagel. 'King Otto' as he is known has been manager since 2001 and has almost Greek God status after creating one of the greatest footballing shocks by winning Euro 2004.
Rehhagel had a distinguished playing career with Hertha Berlin and Kaiserslautern in the late 60s and 70s before moving into management where he held the top job at clubs such as Werder Bremen, Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich. Rehhagel became the first man to be involved in 1000 games in the Bundesliga as a player and a coach, a record he is very proud of.
Such is the status of King Otto he has just signed a new deal with the Greeks that will take him through to 2010.

QUALIFYING STAGES...
Greece qualified for Euro 2008 by winning their group and amassing the highest points total of any finalist with 31 points. It wasn't all plain sailing for Rehhagel's side though as they also suffered one of their most humiliating defeats ever by losing 4-1 at home to bitter rivals Turkey.
Here is the Group C qualifying table...

Teams	Pld	+/-	Pts
Greece	12	15	31
Turkey	12	14	24
Norway	12	16	23
Bosnia-Herzegovina	12	-6	13
Moldova	12	-7	12
Hungary	12	-11	12
Malta	12	-21	5

THEIR GROUP...
Greece have been drawn in a very competitive Group D for the big tournament and will face and will face Spain, Russia and Sweden.

PLAYERS TO WATCH...
Vasillis Torosidis... One of the new breed, Torosidis is one of the hottest properties in Greek football right now. The 22-year-old versatile defender has already won 11 caps for his country and has been outstanding for Olympiakos this season. This is definetely one to watch.
Traianos Dellas... Dellas, pictured, is one of the veterans of the Greek squad and was outstanding in the team that won Euro 2004, gaining a place in the tournament's All Star team.. The AEK Athens man mountain has had his problems with injury over the last few years but has been back to his best of late and could be relied on to add experience to the Greek side.
Angelos Charisteas... Striker Charisteas is another of the Euro 2004 veterans and scored three goals during the Greeks qualifying campaign. The 28 year old moved to FC Nuremberg last season and is another player who coach Rehhagel will be looking to bring experience to his side and hopefully score the goals.

THE KIT...
Greece play in kit made by Adidas.
Their home kit consists of white top, white shorts and white socks with blue stripes. The away kit is a blue top, blue shorts and blue socks with white stripes.
Buy the Greek home and away strip here...

THEIR CHANCES...
Greece shocked the world by winning Euro 2004 when everyone had written them off against Portugal in the final. Coach Rehhagel is a proven master tactician but will have to have his side at their very best to get out of their group and have any chance of retaining their title. They will be tough to break down but I can't see them getting enough to make the second stages.

Probably the best sponsor in the world...

The Euro 2008 sponsors have been busy of late getting their campaigns for the big tournament in full swing and Danish drinks giant Carlsberg have been working overtime.

The Carlsberg.com Euro 2008 website is a cracker and is filled with plenty to keep you occupied when wasting time at work over the coming weeks and during the tournament. With games, competitons, fan guides, screensavers, ringtones, wallpaper and plenty of interactive content for when the first whistle is blown and the tournament is up and running there is plenty there for all.

Get yourself over to Carlsberg.com and check out a quality piece of web design that will is well worth bookmarking.

Havin' a ball...

The official ball for Euro 2008 has been unveiled by Adidas and according to the hype that goes with it there should be no excuses from goalkeepers this time round.

The Europass, as the sportswear giants have christened it, has been designed to avoid the ridiculous swerve we have seen from some previous tournament balls and fans in Row Z should be safe from what can only be described as 'flyaway' footballs of the last few big tourneys. The Europass has also been designed to allow better glove to ball grip so if Buffon flings one in to the net don't believe a word of the 'Di ball bent away from me' excuses that may appear. Reverting to a more traditional 'panel effect' this ball is a throwback to the olden days with the technology of the present day flung in for good measure.

The Europass that will be used in the tournament retails at £74.99 and can be bought here, while replicas can be snapped up for a mere £14.99 here. Take a look at this video of the ball being produced, kindly supplied for the world to see by Adidas...ENJOY!



PS The Europass has also been added to the YOYWYW banner to give Herzog and Turkilmaz something to play with.

Charity Euro 2008 Fantasy Footy...

Another Euro 2008 Fantasy Football competition has been brought to my attention and this is one that I hope you all get involved in.

Football 4 Charity is a not-for-profit organisation, which raises money for HOPEHIV which helps Africa's AIDs orphans and Tommy's who do research into premature birth, miscarriage & stillbirth.

The concept was started in 2001 by a kind hearted bloke called Sam Munnings after his brother was given £10 by his local church and asked to raise as much money as he could from it. Sam decided to set up a Fantasy Football league using this £10 which 24 people joined at £2 a go raising £48. The website has since run five further Fantasy Football leagues and many other events and has raised a tremendous £3601 for charity.

Pre-registration is now underway for the Football 4 Charity Euro 2008 competition where teams start at £3 each with extra teams being given should you choose to manage more than one side. Why not pool together with 10 or more of your mates and set up your own league, ten teams costs £21 so you are getting three teams free and you could have a bit of fun and banter durng the tournament while knowing that your money is doing some good.

Click here to join the Football 4 Charity competition and do a good deed by giving to...

Win Euro 2008 tickets with Canon...

Euro 2008 sponsors Canon are currently running a competition where you can win a VIP package to Euro 2008 or one of 2008 other Canon prizes.

To be in with a chance to scoop one of these top prizes click here to get started. Once you have filled in your details you will be asked three questions related to the European Championships, this section of the competition is timed so don't mess about. You will then be shown a picture and asked to Spot the Ball, again this is on the clock so be quick.

Good luck and let me know if you scoop any of the prizes.

The Contenders...Switzerland

Today we take a look at the second of the hosts for Euro 2008 and another one of the teams not expected by many to make much of an impact. If there is to be a side who provide a shock I reckon it could very well be this one...

Switzerland

THE MANAGER...
Switzerland will be led into this summer's competition by Jacob Kuhn. The 65 year old, who was capped 63 times by his country will quit after the tournament and will be looking to go out on a high before being replaced by Ottmar Hitzfeld. Having played over 500 games for FC Zurich during his 16 year career Kuhn has managed the national side since 2001 and made his first task on taking the job to cull the older players and try to bring through the youths who had won the 2002 European Under 17 Championship. Kuhn has already succesfully led the Swiss to the Euro 2004 and the 2006 World Cup.

QUALIFYING STAGES...
Like Austria, Switzerland qualified for Euro 2008 automatically by being a host nation. During the last few years manager Kuhn has tried to organise his young squad by playing in numerous friendlies, though not always with success. The Swiss achieved a position of 17 in the FIFA rankings after the 2006 World Cup though have been sitting in around the 40s since then and currently hold 46th position. Over the last year Switzerland have played friendlies against some of Europe's top sides with the best result achieved being a 2-1 win over Holland and a 1-1 draw against Argentina. Here are Switzerland's last five friendly results...

26/03/2008 Switzerland 0 Germany 4
06/02/2008 England 2 Switzerland 1
20/11/2007 Switzerland 0 Nigeria 1
17/10/2007 Switzerland 0 USA 1
13/10/2007 Switzerland 3 Austria 1

THEIR GROUP...
Switzerland were drawn in Group A and will face the tough, but not impossible task of trying to qualify by beating the Czech Republic, Portugal and Turkey.


PLAYERS TO WATCH...
Alexander Frei... Striker and captain Frei, pictured, is one of the more experienced campaigners in the Swiss squad. The Borussia Dortmund hitman was part of the Euro 2004 and 2006 World Cup squads and has 56 international caps to his name. He is also only 3 goals away from becoming Switzerland's all-time top scorer.
Philippe Senderos... Arsenal's somewhat erratic defender will play a crucial part in the Swiss' assault on this summer's tournament. Senderos, who is from Spanish and Serbian descent, is prone to the odd slip up or sending off, but can also be crucial at set pieces and was a huge loss at the 2006 World Cup after receiving a shoulder injury. The Swiss never conceded a goal during that tournament and went out on penalties to Ukraine in the last 16 without Senderos in the side.
Gelson Fernandes... Born in Cape Verde, midfielder Gelson could be a player to make his big breakthrough at this summer's tournament. Signed by Sven Goran Erikkson during last summer for Manchester City, the former England manager has hailed Fernandes as the 'Best Young Player in Switzerland' and there are high hopes that he will take to the big stage and come of age this summer.


THE KIT...
Switzerland play in kit made by Puma.
Their home kit consists of red top, white shorts and red socks with white lines. The away kit has white tops with red flashes, red shorts and white socks with red lines.
Buy the Swiss home and away strip here...

THEIR CHANCES...
Switzerland could surprise many and have proved with their performance at the 2006 World Cup that manager Kuhn can get them organised and they can be very stuffy at the back. In what is undoubtedly going to be a tight group I can see home advantage counting here and the Swiss qualifying from the group stages.

The Contenders...Austria

Having had a short break it's now time to start winding up to the big tournament itself. Over the next few weeks we'll be taking a look at the sixteen contenders for Euro 2008, the top players to look out for, the venues for the matches and anything else I can muster up the energy to include. Today we start by looking at our first team, one of the hosts and everyone's favourite whipping boys...

Austria

THE MANAGER...
The Austrians will be led into Euro 2008 by Josef Hickersberger. One of the most succesful figures in Austrian football and in his second spell in charge of the national team Hickersberger will be hoping to get the best out of his young squad and do better than he did when last in charge of his country.
Hickersberger led Austria to the World Cup in 1990 after taking charge for the qualifying stages in 1988. After a poor tournament he managed to hang onto the job until a defeat to the Faroe Islands during qualifying for Euro 92 saw him being sacked after 29 matches in charge.
Having travelled around since managing sides in Germany, Austria and then the Middle East the 60 year old returned to manage Austria Vienna and led them to the 2003/04 Austrian league title and a place in the group stages of the Champions League before returning to manage the national side.

QUALIFYING STAGES...
Being a host, Austria didn't need to endure the qualification process, which is probably a blessing in disguise as they would probably have failed to make their own tournament if they had faced up against some of Europe's big guns. Ranked 102 in the world, one place ahead of Benin and their lowest ever FIFA ranking, the Austrians have spent the last year or so playing friendly matches and blooding young players in a bid to get themselves ready for their biggest test in years. During these games they have managed one victory in the last eleven matches, a 1-0 win over the Ivory Coast. They have faced some stern opposition though in England, France, Holland and Germany during these games but it doesn't bode well for when they come up against their tough group rivals when Euro 2008 gets underway. Here are the Austrians last five friendly results...

26/03/2008 Austria 3 Holland 4
06/02/2008 Austria 0 Germany 3
21/11/2007 Austria 0 Tunisia 0
16/11/2007 Austria 0 England 1
17/10/2007 Austria 3 Ivory Coast 2

THEIR GROUP...
Austria were drawn in Group B and will face tournament favourites Germany. The scourge of England, Croatia and surprise package Poland who had a tremendous qualifying campaign finishing top of their group ahead of Portugal.


PLAYERS TO WATCH...
Andreas Ivanschitz... Attacking midfielder Ivanschitz, pictured, is the Austrian captain and plays his club football in Greece with Panathinaikos. The 24 year old is a huge favourite of the fans and media alike and has been dubbed the' Austrian Beckham'.
Emanuel Pogatetz... Probably the most recognisable of the Austrians, Pogatetz plays his football in the Premiership for Middlesborough. The 35 year old defender is one of the most experienced players likely to make the Austrian's final squad.
Martin Harnik... German born Harnik could prove to be the surprise package for the Austrians in Euro 2008. The 20 year old striker, who holds an Austrian passport and chose to play for them ahead of Germany, has been gaining praise after breaking into the Werder Bremen first team from their Under 23 squad this season.

THE KIT...
The Austrian's play in kit made by Puma.
Their home kit consists of red top, white shorts with red flashes and white socks with red tops. The away kit has black tops with gold flashes, black shorts with gold flashes and black socks with gold tops.
Buy the Austria home and away strip here...

THEIR CHANCES...
The Austrians, even with home advantage, will do well to get a point from Group B...simple as that in my view. If they do get anything then I'm a Water-Skiing Squirrel!

Euroballoon...

Today's addition to the YOYWYW banner is the official hot air balloon of this summer's Euro 2008 tournament.

The Euroballoon, as it has been originally christened, is shaped in the form of the Henri Delaunay trophy that will currently resides in Greece and will be presented to the tournament winners in the Ernst Happel stadium on Sunday 29th June.

The Euroballoon will be touring the host nations this month along with the UEFA Experience Tour, which will take in all eight host cities showcasing the tournament and the plans Austria and Switzerlan have in place. Fans will also be able to have their photo taken alongside the real Henri Delaunay trophy and watch a 25 minute movie charting the previous 12 European Championship tournaments in the worlds largest tent.

Keep your eyes peeled for the Euroballoon if you happen to be in Austria or Switzerland over the coming month.

Euro 2008 Official Song.. Stepping Up

European Championships over the years have produced some legendary poor official songs and this summers' tournament looks set to eclipse even the most memorable.

Who can remember (and no that shouldn't say forget) the classic effort England produced for Euro 96 when everyone's favourite Manc, Mick Hucknall and Simply Red gave us 'We're in this Together'? I still find myself humming this to this day..or do I still find this humming?

Then there was Nelly Furtado's effort from the last tournament in Portugal in 2004. Entitled 'Forca' this at least gave us a bit of eye candy to look at, but it wasnt exactly the most inspirational of footie tunes now was it?

The only song to have resembled anything to do with football over the last few years was Euro 2000's effort when Martin 'E-Type' Erikkson brought us 'Campione' a song inspired by the 'Championees, Championees' chant with a bit of a Two Unlimited twist in there. OK, it was still pish but had a hell of lot more relating to football than any of it's predecessors.

So, what have the Austrians and Swiss come up with then to pleasure our ears this summer. Well, believe it or not their choice of artist to provide the official tune is none other than...Shaggy!
Yep, the Jamacian born reggae star, named after Scooby Doos favourite friend is the man charged with getting the song 'Stepping Up' firmly into our heads and you know what, it's a catchy wee number. Again, it doesn't really have anything to do with football but I reckon this could be ringing in your ears when this summer's big tournament comes around.

The video fo 'Stepping Up' seems to be aimed solely at the youngsters. Shaggy is nowhere to be seen, as Euro 2008 mascots, Trix and Flix have a ball in the Alps..more about the mascots at a later date...

Check it out and let me know if this is HIT or PISS by leaving your comments below.

Everyone's favourite Swiss family...

Today's addition to the YOYWYW banner sees Disney legends the Swiss Family Robinson being added to our Hall of Fame.

Taken from the book 'Der Scweizerische Robinson' and adapted for TV in the late 1950s this story of a, funny enough, Swiss family's adventures after being shipwrecked in the East Indies enroute to New Guinea graced the screens for decades.

After being forced to remain on the island the family settle down in their giant treehouse and set about dealing with everything that island life throws at them including, pirates, survival and learning to live with the uncertainty of if they will ever make it to their destination.

The first movie hit the screens in 1960 and starred John Mills as 'Father and Dorothy McGuire as Mother. Amongst the family favourites were dogs, Duke and Turk and all the other animals who became part of the extended clan including Ricky the elephant and Clementine, the ostrich.

Swiss Family Robinson returned to the TV screens with three further movies in the early 70s before Hollywood took a childrens favourite and turned it into farce. Beverly Hills Family Robinson was the beginning of the end before a few further remakes in 2000 and the final attempt in 2007 which was aptly titled Swiss Family Robinson: The Remake.

The story even made it into computer game format in 1984 when a game for the Apple and Commodore 64 computers was brought out in which the players took the role of Fritz, the eldest of the four brothers.

A cult classic, which will no doubt return in about 2020 with the sons all being the grandparents of the latest batch who by sheer ridiculous coincidence will end up..stranded on a desert island.

Castrol Performance Index...

One of Euro 2008s many sponsors, Castrol, have been analysing player performances, match stats and basically everything you could possibly think of to do with the Euro 2008 tournament. Endorsed by Arsene Wenger, this stats-fest is a must for Fantasy Football managers.

The Castrol Performance Index website has been following the tournament all the way through qualifying and has one of the most comprehensive databases of what has been happening on the pitch, providing great stats and insight into the teams ahead of the finals. Ideal for anyone who likes a fixed odds bet, fantasy football managers or simply just any sad Stattos out there this site is a must. During the tournament itself there will be LIVE match trackers where you can follow every kick of the ball and blade of grass covered, aswell as every players bit of sublime or duff action.

Castrol are also running a competition in conjunction with their site where you can win tickets to the Euro 2008 Final and get an opportunity to meet the Player of the Tournament. The downside to this competition is that you need to either have your vehicle serviced at a Castrol dealer or buy Castrol oil from a participating retailer and you will be given an access code. It would have certainly attracted a lot more traffic if this was a free to enter competition, but if you're needing oil then make sure you get yourself some that provides you with an access code.

Check out the Castrol Performance Index website though and take advantage of the hordes of information when you're picking your Fantasy Footy teams.