Let the Tournament Begins! Enjoy!

Teams, Players and Fans

Photos and colors of EURO 2008

EURO Past Champions: 1988 Holland

After bowing out of the tournament in agonising circumstances in 1984, West Germany expected far greater things when they finally got their chance to stage the UEFA European Championship for the first time in 1988.

Strong hosts

Franz Beckenbauer was masterminding their effort for a start, and most neutrals envisaged his side steamrollering the field after reaching their second straight FIFA World Cup final two years earlier. Their lineup looked stronger too, with the injection of newcomers Jürgen Klinsmann, Jürgen Kohler and Thomas Berthold, plus a fit-again Rudi Völler.

Promising crop

Holders France failed to qualify, which left Italy as the one team expected to trouble Germany, and their youthful crop of players including Paolo Maldini and Gianluca Vialli managed just that in the Group 1 curtain-raiser. The two title aspirants contested a 1-1 draw before both went on to beat Denmark and Spain. Superior goal difference placed the hosts top above Italy.

Irish debut

Group 2 contained an England side impressive in qualifying, but their bid began unravelling with a 1-0 defeat to Jack Charlton's Republic of Ireland. Ultimately, neither team progressed as the Soviet Union and the Netherlands took the semi-final spots on offer, although the Irish came within eight minutes of a goalless draw with the Dutch that would have seen them progress instead.

Talented trio

Wim Kieft's deflected effort made the difference in that encounter, but the real stars in Rinus Michels' team were the AC Milan trio of Frank Rijkaard, Ruud Gullit and Marco van Basten. Merely a substitute for their opening 1-0 loss to the USSR, instinctive finisher Van Basten was particularly inspired in the Oranje's next outing, plundering a hat-trick in the crucial 3-1 success over England.

Hamburg heroics

The Soviets matched that result against England and then sunk Italy 2-0 in the semi-finals, with danger-man Oleg Protassov among the goals. But the real sensation unfolded in Hamburg, where the Dutch overcame their German neighbours for the first time in 32 years, despite falling behind to Lothar Matthäus's penalty. Ronald Koeman levelled from the spot and Van Basten converted a late chance to avenge their 1974 FIFA World Cup final loss and earn another crack at the USSR.

Dutch masterpiece

Nearly 60 per cent of the Dutch population tuned in to see their heroes succeed in the final where the 'total footballers' of the 1970s had failed. With dreadlocks flailing about him, Gullit headed in the opener before an absolute masterpiece sealed the result. Meeting Arnold Mühren's looping crossfield ball in a seemingly impossible position on the right, Van Basten crashed an acrobatic volley over goalkeeper Rinat Dasaev and just inside the far post. Hans van Breukelen later contributed a penalty save, yet it is that spearing, plunging, schoolboy's dream of a second goal that will forever capture the imagination

Hi-Tech Gadgets Reviews

Sony Ericsson W980 Walkman Preview: 8 gigs of character

It's no news any more that we've been playing with one of the hotties of the season for some time now. Sony Ericsson W980 made a glorious entrance but we're yet to see about the exit. Set to top the Walkman feature phone lineup, W980 carries along 8 GB worth of storage, a 3 megapixel camera and a built-in accelerometer. The touch-sensitive keys and the latest Sony Ericsson feature phone interface add to the excitement. Still not interested? Then try to think of another music phone with a built-in FM transmitter!

Key features:

2.2" 262K-color TFT LCD display of QVGA resolution
3 megapixel camera
8 gigs of onboard memory
FM transmitter
Great user interface
3G with HSDPA
External 262K-color display with a resolution of 176 x 176 pixels
Walkman 3.0 music player
Shake control
Light effects
Touch-sensitive keys
Ambient light sensor
Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP profile support
USB 2.0 connectivity
FM radio with RDS
Good battery life
Comfortable keypad

Main disadvantages:

No auto focus nor flash for the camera
Inconvenient camera lens location
Shiny surface a fingerprint nightmare
Display kinda small for a high-end phone
Awkward context keys
Camera interface not user-friendly
Aiming to meet some high-end demand, Sony Ericsson W980 brings the cream of the music centered niceties of the house. The clamshell form factor and the quite eccentric features such as FM transmitter and light effects make it hard to point a finger at its main market rivals.

Final words

As time has come for us to part with Sony Ericsson W980, we are left with quite positive impressions. The latest Walkman clamshell has a really nice feature-pack and great user interface to back it up.
The camera functionality was the only serious disappointment - the lack of auto focus and the ridiculous camera interface are anything but appropriate for a high-end such as this one.

However the Sony Ericsson W980 manages to flaunt a number of unique extras that make it stand out. The piano black front, light effects and the FM transmitter are not something to find on every other phone out there. Identity is getting more and more crucial in the overcrowded mobile market. That alone is enough for a well deserved pat on the back for Sony Ericsson W980.

The only reason for a cool-off is the lack of information about the expected price of Sony Ericsson W980. We can't help anticipating a rather hefty price tag on the new Walkman flagship. This might just be enough to throw it in the pool with some big sharks and we are not quite sure if the W980 will make it there. We do like it enough though to hope it proves us wrong.