成人论坛

Vienna

There is at least one man in Austria who hopes the fate of the Henri Delaunay Trophy isn't decided by penalties.

J. Alexander Richter's company is responsible for laying the turf at the Ernst Happel Stadium, the venue for the final of Euro 2008.

So far, the pitch is holding up very well, but Richter is not counting his chickens yet. After all, it was grass provided by his firm that cut up at just the wrong moment in Moscow. Remember in the Champions League final?

Vienna-born Richter, a board member of the (yep, there is such a thing), has double cause for concern ahead of the 29 June finale in Vienna.

Not only is national pride at stake, but he is apparently busy negotiating a contract with moneybags Chelsea to provide the turf at Stamford Bridge.

Another slip could be very costly indeed...

For the record, Richter's company has provided the grass for pitches at the Stadio (San Siro) in Milan and the Stadio della Alpi in Turin.

A square metre of the luscious green stuff can cost as much as 20 euros - and you need 7,500-8,000 of them.

So I'm not expecting to see any trucks from Austria heading for my local Beckenham Town this summer.