England have announced their base for the World Cup Finals in Germany next June/July. The team will be residing in the 5-star Buhlerhohe hotel, a resort which will guarantee total privacy for England's players during the World Football Tournament. The resort is situated in the Black Forest Mountains and offers fantastic views of the Rhine valley.

England's coach Sven-Goran Eriksson told reporters that "I'm delighted with the hotel. It's so important that we have the right base camp, as this will be the players' home and set the atmosphere as we prepare for all of our games."

"We've already identified a training ground five minutes from the hotel which we will use every day and are a good travelling distance to the venues we have been drawn to play in during the group phase," he said about FC Buhl's stadium.

Family members of every player and official in the England squad might be allowed to stay in the hotel but only for the night after each match, as was the case in the Euro 2004 tournament.

Meanwhile, the residents of the town seem to be very excited hosting England's players, despite fears that the place will be an attractive destination for the approximately 100,000 England fans expected to travel to Germany next summer. Local residents and land owners fear that the fans will damage the vine terraces and urinate on trees.

Asked to comment on the news, the major of Buhl which neighbours Baden-Baden said "It's marvellous! You have some of the world's greatest footballers. Beckham is the non plus ultra on the field. There's Owen. And you have Rooney, who is always good for a goal."

When asked by English reporters on whether England can beat Germany if they meed in the Knockout Stages of the 2006 World Cup, he replied "England is always an unpleasant opponent."

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