Football In The Freezer

Austria and Switzerland, host nations for next year's European Cup, played an otherworldly game on Friday to celebrate one year's countdown to the 2008 competition.

In what must be one of the chilliest five-a sides in history, Austria and Switzerland squared up atop a glacier some 3545 metres above sea-level.

The match was played on a strip of artificial turf, and luckily enough the ball wasn't kidnapped by the abominable snowman. One or two big names joined in, including David Degen for Switzerland and Christian Fuchs for Austria. That said, rivalries were given a rest for the day, with the match ending in an amicable draw - the final score being 5-5.

As the host nations, Austria and Switzerland qualify automatically for Euro 2008. Although it might have made for an interesting alternative, all tournament matches will be played below 2500 metres above sea level.