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Between 12 Jun and 4 Jul 2004 Portugal will host its greatest ever sporting event – Euro 2004. In preparation for the glaring media spotlight, Sporting’s new 54,000-seater stadium was built at a cost of US$86 million but the final will be held at the 65,000- seater Estadio de Luz, Benfica’s hallowed turf, which has been given a state-of-the-art overhaul. The Portuguese Football League is often berated for being dominated by Benfica (http://www.slbenfica.pt), FC Porto and Sporting Lisbon (http://www.sporting.pt). In 2001, Boavista broke the stultifying stranglehold of the big three by winning the Portuguese liga. The national team is another story entirely and has Portugal has earned the sobriquet ‘the Brazil of European Football’ for its innovative and exciting football, spearheaded by a roll call of greats like Luis Figo, Rui Costa and Nuno Gomez. While Figo and Co may be reaching the end of their careers, new talent is promising to shine through with Portugal’s youth team dominating world football. Following an early exit from the World Cup 2002 in Korea and after finishing in third place in the Euro competitions three times, Portugal, under coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, will attempt to win its first international crown. For further information check out the official website: euro2004.com, for fixtures, team information, news articles and press archives.
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