Football fever has taken hold of all of Europe these past few weeks. It is the European Football Championships and as it is only held every 4 years, it's a big deal.
People still remark on the rather recent phenomenon of flag flying in Germany. Until Germany hosted the World Cup in 2006 and the German team reached the semi-finals, fueling an explosion of national pride, flag-waving was not common. There was a decades-old fear that flag-waving and national pride was inextricably associated with Germany's Nazi past. 
There is no apprehension today, especially among younger Germans, to hook a flag onto a car door.Germany has been playing well and tonight in the semi-finals will take on, of all teams, Turkey. There are 2.7 million people either of Turkish citizenship or heritage living in Germany, the country’s largest minority. With both teams still alive, it has been doubly festive here and up to this point mutually supportive, as many Germans have cheered on the Turks and vice versa.
We have seen many different national flags on people's cars, mostly German of course, but from other countries,too. We have also seen several cars flying both the German and Turkish flags and have spied flags that incorporate the German and Turkish flags. Ahhhh, so, who to root for seems to be one of the questions of the day in the Turkish and German communities. The fact that two players on the Turkish team are German nationals makes it an even more intriguing issue.
The hope that the game tonight will bring people in Germany together in a peaceful competition is still tinged with the fear of violent conflict. On the America Armed Forces radio station, there were announcements saying essentially "Remember that tonight is an important soccer match. If you are out and about, be aware of your surroundings and the potential for conflict."
This is the captain of the German team Michael Ballack. Who do you think would play him in a movie?
Maybe Matt Damon?
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