MATT LAWTON'S EURO BLOG: It hurts being down amongst the Scots, being charged £3 to have a pair of pants washed and I can't believe the tolerance shown to the suspected Nazi war criminal watching Croatia at Euro 2008

There we were, queueing for passes for Italy's pre-match press conference in Zurich, when the man in the blue UEFA polo shirt delivered the killer line. "I'm sorry," he said. "But non-participating countries will have to wait."

Now I realise English journalists have been in this situation before. USA '94. Argentina in '78. But it remains humiliating at a European Championships when you're standing among colleagues from Japan, China and Scotland in the hope of securing what has somehow become the hottest ticket in town.

In the spotlight: All eyes are on the Italians ahead of their clash with France and their press conference was all-ticket

One chap from Scotland decided he'd had quite enough after '10 years' of being treated like a second class citizen.

"Two words," he declared. "**** this", before spinning on his heels and disappearing into the night.

Clearly, the stadia here are inadequate. Not only in terms of the average capacity but in terms of the facilities that have been provided for the media.

No press conference attracts more journalists than an England press conference at a World Cup and never have the FA had to make one an all-ticket affair. Not even for David Beckham's farewell speech in Baden-Baden two years ago.

But the need to kill time while waiting to be told by UEFA that no, we couldn't come in, did lead to an interesting conversation about life on the road.

And in particular how much we were being charged to get our laundry done.

Pants story

I thought drinks were pretty pricey here in Switzerland but nothing compares to getting a pair of underpants washed. I had 10 pairs washed yesterday, and it cost me more than 30 quid.

Another 30 quid went on a couple of shirts and some socks but I couldn't get over the £3 charge for a pair of pants. So I put it to the floor. Was there a way around it?

One colleague had somehow found the time to sit in a launderette, while another suggested it would be cheaper to have a washing machine installed in your hotel room.

A third suggested simply buying new underwear, which would be fine, and eminently more sensible, if you knew you could charge it on your expenses.

While someone else then floated the idea of bringing out 26 pairs of pants for the 26 days we are here. Fine, I thought, if I actually owned 26 pairs of pants.

But then we were told about this Japanese journalist who claims to have come up with the perfect solution.

He arrived in Switzerland with one spare pair of socks, one spare pair of pants, one spare t-shirt and a large bottle of travel wash. And he stands in his room every night and washes the clothes he has spent the day wearing.

Worth a try? Most definitely not.

The conversation then moved on to this extraordinary story about Milivoj Asner, the 95-year-old suspected Nazi war criminal who has been spotted watching his native Croatia in Klagenfurt. 

Osama Bin Laden is said to have once watched Arsenal - although back when he was a student in England - but I did find the Austrians' apparent tolerance of Asner more than a little disturbing.

Try and get a journalist accredited here now the tournament has started and it is impossible. An absolute no no because of all the police checks that need to be made.

But tickets for the man ranked number four on Interpol's most wanted list? No problem.  

Back home, on the BBC, I'm told Gary Lineker is now predicting 'those perennial underachievers, Spain' will win this tournament.

Presumably because the perennial underachievers from England aren't here.