Cash in on Euro kickoff

Beijing is gearing up for a summer of sport, albeit vicariously, after the UEFA European Football Championship, or Euro 2012, kicked off in Poland and Ukraine at the weekend, to be closely followed by the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Businesses are hoping to cash in on the demand from sports lovers, including companies that provide services for drivers to get home who have had one tipple too many while watching the late-night games.

A representative, surnamed Liu, from Beijing Changyin Wuyou Automotive Technology Service, told the Global Times yesterday that calls to order driving services have increased.

"Business boomed sharply during the 2010 World Cup," she said, "right now, we're recruiting more drivers to prepare for a peak," Liu said.

Many bars have erected large screens and expect an increase in business through summer.

But there still may be trouble along with the extra cash.

"Some teams win and some lose. Fans of different teams might have conflicts, or even fight, especially when they get drunk," Yan Lu, manager of Zoom Club, in Houhai, Xicheng district, told the Beijing Youth Daily yesterday.

"Euro 2012 is also a challenge for us. In case the fans go nuts, we've divided the club into different areas for fans of different teams," said Yan.

An employee, surnamed Zhang, who works in the Skyline Bar in Sanlitun, Chaoyang district, said that so far, she has not noticed any football fans being too boisterous.

It's partly because of the rigorous police patrols in the area, Zhang said.

"And we're also told to pay more attention to football fans. If we see someone is drunk, and about to lose control, we'll cut them off," she said.

Jin Kai, a football fan, said the fun of going to a bar is because of the atmosphere.

"Even if my favorite team loses, I won't get into a brawl with other fans. It makes no sense. We should try to be civilized football fans," he said.

So far, there have been no reports of trouble.

Yesterday morning, in packed Irish bar Paddy O'Shea's on Dongzhimenwai Dajie, fans of all nationalities, including Dutch and Danish, watched Denmark beat Holland 1-0 in a convivial atmosphere.

However, as the matches are televised at midnight and 2:45 am, Beijing Traffic Management Bureau has warned of increased traffic around popular nightlife areas, including Wudaokou, Haidian district and Sanlitun, Chaoyang district.