Euro 2008

Vienna

I sat transfixed for 10 whole minutes before coming to my senses and tearing my eyes off the television screen in front of me. Well, c'mon on, it's not often you are faced with a man pretending to be Michel Platini in his pomp, prancing around a pitch in an empty stadium with no ball, no other players and no referee.

Massimo Furlan was re-enacting the 1982 World Cup semi-final between France and West Germany in his own special way, having memorised Platini's every move from that night in Seville. It made bizarre viewing, especially as Furlan seemed to be working up quite a sweat.

For the record, France lost that game 5-4 on penalties, although the match was ultimately remembered for Harold 'Toni' Schumacher's sickening challenge on Patrick Battison.

Furlan's video, shot at the Parc de Princes in Paris in 2006, is just one tiny part of a fantastic football exhibition here in Vienna.

I'd given myself a couple of hours to check it out and could quite easily have spent double that time re-visiting room after room at the Technisches Museum at Karlsplatz.

It's hard to pick out a favourite exhibit. There was so much footage of matches, not to mention fascinating documentaries and interactive attractions, that it would probably take a couple of days to experience it all properly. There was even video of an arthroscopic examination of a damaged knee joint.

What impressed me most was the innovative way the exhibition organisers had made best use of their visuals. One cinema room had five giant screens mixing highlights with film clips. My particular favourite had spliced Michael Owen's wonderful solo goal against Argentina at the 1998 World Cup with slow-motion action scenes from The Matrix.

There were also two small darkened rooms where you could watch film of George Best and Zinedine Zidane. The director of the Zidane piece had caught the former France midfielder from 17 different angles as he played for Real Madrid against Villarreal back in 2005. Moody for the most part, Zidane is seen to exchange a mischievous grin with team-mate Roberto Carlos at one point. It was a delightful moment.

But it wasn't just about the players... the exhibition also focused on the fans, from their choice of clothes through the years to a special documentary on the Royal Shrovetide spectacular that takes place annually in Ashbourne in Derbyshire.

For anyone who doesn't know, the games, which take place on Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday, each last for eight hours as two teams - the Up 'ards and the Down 'ards - battle to score in goals that are three miles apart.

There was plenty of fun items, too, notably a training video instructing players how to dive properly and feign injury. Another favourite was footage of Maradona warming up before a game for Napoli, set to the tune of Live is Life by Austrian rock band Opus. I bet some of your parents have a copy hidden away somewhere. If not, you can always go to the group's official website and download a new version of the song, released a couple of weeks ago to coincide with Euro 2008.

I can assure you that once you hear it again you'll be singing it in your head. Some of you may even be compelled to belt it out in the office. I already have.

And if you're in Vienna, find time to visit The Football Exhibition for yourself. You won't be disappointed.