German police praise England fans

FRANKFURT: German police on Sunday praised England's fans for a trouble-free World Cup opener against Paraguay, although it was a different story at home despite a winning start for David Beckham and his side.

Some 65,000 England supporters partied in the western city of Frankfurt before, during and after their country's tense 1-0 victory on Saturday, turning the stadium and public viewing points into a sea of white and red flags.

Police said the fans had done their part to keep Frankfurt relaxed and peaceful after fears of hooligan clashes. "The praise goes to the security strategy but in equal measure to the guests who behaved impeccably," a police spokesman said.

German police were assisted by 70 British police, some in uniform.  On Friday night, scuffles broke out in Frankfurt and riot police moved in to arrest 20 fans, although only a handful of Englishmen were among them.

The spokesman for the World Cup unit of the German border police, Wolfgang Sommerer, said today that the authorities were pleased and relieved that the first two days of the extravaganza had gone off nationwide with any major incidents.