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Soccer Shorts

■ Germany
Gala to get the beer flowing
Soccer fans can guzzle up to 24,000 liters of beer at a Berlin gala featuring stars such as Nelly Furtado and Ronan Keating two days before the start of the World Cup. Around 100,000 people are expected to descend on the city center for tomorrow's mammoth event at the start of a Fan Mile linking two of Berlin's most famous landmarks. The tree-lined main thoroughfare from the Brandenburg Gate to the Victory Column has been sealed off for the Fan Mile where supporters can buy souvenirs and view matches on huge screens. Those present will include soccer greats Pele, Sir Bobby Charlton and Germany's Paul Breitner, who will also be kicking soccer balls into the crowd. The concert, which is free-of-charge, kicks off the capital's contribution to the World Cup, which opens in Munich on Friday and culminates with the final in Berlin on July 9.

■ Thailand
All World Cup bets are on
An estimated 3.7 million Thais are expected to bet up to US$250 million on matches at the World Cup, a new poll revealed on Sunday. Almost one-third of the 63-million population is gearing up to watch the month-long tournament, while 3.7 million are preparing to bet on the games, according to the state-run Thai News Agency, which quoted a ABAC Poll Center survey. ABAC Poll Center director Noppadol Kannika said the survey showed nearly two-thirds of those who planned to gamble of the games said they intended to bet amounts in excess of 10,000 baht (US$250). According to ABAC Poll, one in four persons, or 25.1 percent, had missed work or failed to attend school classes during previous football events. All forms of gambling are illegal in Thailand, including betting on football matches.

■ Hong Kong
Fans to become night owls
More than 60 percent of Hong Kong's residents plan to stay up after midnight to watch World Cup soccer matches, according to a survey released yesterday. Of those, nearly one in seven intend to try to watch every game broadcast live from the month-long tournament in Germany, the poll by the Democratic Alliance political party found. Seven percent of those interviewed said they would be taking time off work to stay up for the World Cup games while 43 percent intended to go to work as normal the next day. The study found that 60.4 percent of all interviewees planned to watch matches that kick off at midnight or later and 13.2 percent of those intended to watch every available live game. Football is hugely popular in the former British colony of 6.8 million where English Premier League matches as well as Italian and Spanish games are screened live.

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