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Interview: Otto Rehhagel
“Brazil are always the gold standard in June”
The world
champions, the Olympic gold medalists, the European champions and the top
nations from all the FIFA confederations will contest the FIFA Confederations
Cup from 15 to 29 June 2005 in Germany. The sparkling line-up for this true
‘Festival of Champions’ is completed by three-time world champions Germany,
hosts for the 2006 FIFA World Cup a year later.
“Everyone's going to enjoy this tournament,”
FIFA World Cup organization chief Lennart Johansson commented at
the draw for the two groups of four and the announcement of the
match schedule.
Otto Rehhagel, which
is easier:
winning Euro 2004 as underdogs, or winning the Confederations Cup 2005 as
European champions?
People initially underestimated us at Euro 2004, so we started well and you
have to say it was easier winning the European Championship after that.
But anyone who knows football already recognized we had a decent team.
But following up a major success or defending a trophy is always that
much more difficult.
What's the image of the Confederations
Cup in Greece and how valuable is it to you?
It definitely has an enhanced reputation nowadays because the Greeks see it as
part of their reward for winning the European title. Greece and her footballers
have earned the chance to take part at a major tournament like this and they
could do something for their own image in June 2005.
What has changed for you personally in Greece since winning
Euro 2004?
I don't have to pay for coffee when I'm in Athens. And on my way to the
Confederations Cup draw in Frankfurt, my taxi driver was Greek and he could
hardly believe who was sitting in his car. He wouldn't let me pay. Instead, he
rang his wife and got me to exchange a few words with her on his mobile phone.
The FIFA Confederations Cup in June 2005 is a true Festival of Champions.
Can European champions Greece hold their own against the other leading nations?
We're European champions so obviously we can mix it with the others.
More than half my players are with clubs in Italy, France, England and Germany
so they're used to dealing with these situations. And even this tournament's no
different from any other in that Brazil are always the gold standard in June.
Your first match pitches you, the European champions, against those very same
world champions.
Lucky Leipzig, they're in for a cracking game there. Brazil are always a little
bit special.
OC senior vice-president Horst R. Schmidt reckons we'll see sell-out crowds at
the Confederations Cup. Do you share his confidence?
It's not every day you get to see Brazil and Argentina, which means this truly
high-quality tournament will be a big hit with the public. Look at the way the
tickets are selling like hot cakes.
Looking ahead to the 2006 FIFA World Cup, what's your view of Germany's current
prospects?
Obviously I'm interested in what goes on around the Germany team. Let's not
forget I was asked to take over after Rudi Völler left. I couldn't accept at
the time, although I'm still German through and through. I have two hearts
nowadays, one beating for Germany and one for Greece.
From your occasional visits to Germany, what do you think of the preparations?
The fabulous stadia and the presence of the tournament will be a massive boost
to the host cities. That's something I've picked up already. In Hanover I felt
the World Cup in the air in the new, extraordinary arena. They've also
constructed an unbelievably fine stadium in Berlin. People who come to Germany
for the World Cup from all over the world are in for a gigantic festival.
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He's a 2.30-metre-tall lion with a talking football as
a sidekick.
His name is Goleo VI, and he is the Official Mascot of the 2006 FIFA
World Cup™. One or two journalists may have preferred a German Shepherd for its
more obvious connection to the host nation, but for the vast majority, Goleo is
a superstar in the making. He has already been travelling the length and
breadth of the land, and his fame is set to spread, thanks to 30 short TV films
currently in production for worldwide distribution. The FIFA World Cup Official
Mascot made a triumphant first public appearance on “Wetten, dass..?”,
Europe's highest-rating Saturday evening show. Goleo VI was created by the Jim
Henson Company, the runaway market leader in the industry and famous around the
world thanks to hit shows such as the Muppets and Sesame Street. EM.TV AG has
acquired worldwide marketing rights to the latest Henson creation for Free TV,
Pay TV and Home Entertainment.
The 2006 FIFA World Cup Official Mascot is a truly ground-breaking figure. In
stark contrast to previous efforts, Goleo can talk, allowing the character to
develop a many-faceted personality and interact with his surroundings.
This ability opens up entirely new opportunities in terms of communication and
the media.
Information available to the media from www.fifaworldcup.com
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