Pierluigi Collina blew the final whistle in the World Cup two years ago in Yokohama. The charismatic Italian will now blow the first one when Euro 2004 opens in Porto tomorrow.

　　Collina, widely regarded as the best referee in the game, was named yesterday to officiate the opening match between hosts Portugal and Greece.

　　The Italian combines a fearsome look - piercing eyes and a shaved head - with a smile and a supportive word when players get out of line.

　　"I am very happy," said Collina, who faces mandatory retirement next year when he turns 45. "It is the first time that I've even been appointed for the opening match of a tournament. An opening match is always special."

　　Collina will be under pressure, and so will host Portugal. The Iberian nation has never won a major international soccer title, and some feel this could be the year.

　　"We've always had pressure," defender Rui Jorge said yesterday. "We had it in the World Cup, I just hope people are not disappointed like they were two years ago."

　　Portugal made a quick exit from the World Cup following losses to the United States and South Korea, a humiliation that still haunts the soccer-mad nation as it prepares for its biggest sporting event.

　　Defending champion France will also feel tension when it meets England on Sunday, with French midfielder Zinedine Zidane saying defeat would be a disaster. The French were the defending champions two years ago in the World Cup, but lost all three of their games and failed to score.

　　"We must absolutely not lose this game," Zidane said.

　　"It's so important for peace of mind in such a competition."

　　"It is possible to recover, but it's not a good situation for the team's confidence," the Real Madrid midfielder added. "We haven't forgotten the frustration and enormous disappointment of the World Cup."

　　"It's good to start a competition well and to get the confidence of the coach."

　　Scalpers are getting up to 10 times the face value for tickets to the match, the first high-profile game of the tournament.

　　Buying and selling tickets on the black market is illegal in Portugal, but scalpers - mostly English - get away with it by selling them one or two at a time.

　　"We have heard that people are being asked 500 euros (US$600) for tickets," said Kevin Miles, international coordinator of the (English) Football Supporters Federation.

　　Tickets for the game cost between 35-90 euros (US$42-108).

　　"It hasn't been reported to us yet, but I must say I'm not exactly surprised," UEFA director of communications William Gaillard said.

　　The start of play can't come soon enough for many players, bored with training and trying to get over niggling injuries.

　　Bulgarian players practicing in the Atlantic resort of Povoa de Varzim complained about sharing small rooms. Forward Zoran Jankovic said players were promised better.

　　"I think the problem has already been solved," Jankovic said. "At least those who demanded new rooms were given such. There was even no space for our clothes, there was only one locker in the rooms. We found it difficult to walk past each other between beds."

　　Portuguese had two things to celebrate yesterday: it's a national holiday - Portugal Day - and local organizers said last-minute tickets were still available for tomorrow's opener at FC Porto's 50,948-seat Stadium of the Dragon.

　　Even ticketless fans will see the game, taking advantage of giant screen outdoor TVs being set up at city plazas across the country.

　　With the holiday set to usher in the opening of the three-week tournament, residents of the capital abandoned the city for nearby beaches with temperatures hovering around 30C.

　　Traffic was backed up across the April 25 Bridge - almost an exact copy of San Francisco's Golden Gate.

　　Although the weather is perfect for soccer and the beach, officials say it may cause a very low voter turnout for Sunday's elections to the European parliament. Portugal's Brazilian coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has given his players Sunday morning off to vote. That will come just hours after the opener against Greece. Prime Minister Jose Manual Durao Barroso has already visited the camp, perhaps looking for extra votes.

　　(The Associated Press)