SWITZERLAND: SOCCER/FOOTBALL - UEFA president Michel Platini visits Bern and Zurich stadiums

Michel Platini, president of the European soccer governing body UEFA, visited Bern and Zurich stadiums on Friday (October 5), ending a two-day tour of the Swiss stadiums due to stage first round Euro 2008 matches. Bern's Wankdorf stadium and Zurich's Letzigrund stadium are both 30,000 seat venues and will host three matches each. Platini described both stadiums as being in good shape, nevertheless mentioning the artificial pitch in Bern was to be changed to grass before the beginning of the competition. "That will change. Artificial pitches are not allowed for final competitions of the UEFA," Platini added. Asked whether the small capacity of the stadiums for an event like Euro 2008 was a problem, Zurich's mayor Elmar Ledergerber admitted it might be too small for Euro 2008 although Zurich looked forward to seeing it full. "For Euro maybe it's too small, but usually here in Zurich we're happy when we have 20,000 spectators so 30,000 will be an excellent average", Ledergerber said. Switzerland's biggest stadium - Basel's St-Jakob-Park - is a 40,000 seat stadium and will stage six matches, including the Euro 2008 opening game.

ITN Source | October 6, 2007

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