As Vienna authorities expect 40,000 German
fans to support their team against Austria on Monday, an additional fan zone
will be opened for the important Euro 2008 match, authorities and organizers
said over the weekend.
The Hanappi stadium, home of Austrian champions Rapid, will be used as an
additional public viewing zone for up to 40,000 fans, Austrian news agency APA
reported. The fan mile in the centre of Vienna holds 74,000 people.
3,500 Austrian police, aided by German colleagues, will try to keep rival
supporters separate in the Austrian capital.
"We know that there will be provocations," Christian Strella, Vienna's police spokesperson, said Sunday.
Police used this tactic when Germany played Poland last Sunday in Klagenfurt. Around 140 potentially violent German fans and some Poles were detained in
order to de-escalate the situation around that game.
Klagenfurt police expects a peaceful atmosphere on Monday, when around 40,000
Poles and Croatians will come to see the other group B game on that day, dpa reported.