(14 June 2006 8:00 pm)

MUMBAI: With the football World Cup gaining momentum in Germany Fifa partners Philips and Yahoo! conducted an Ultimate Football Fan Survey.

The aim was to gain more insight into how fans enjoy and celebrate the game. The results include more than 4,500 respondents from nine countries, including World Cup hopefuls such as Brazil, Germany and The Netherlands, all of whom provided their feelings and perspective on a variety of topics ranging from what they would give up for a ticket to the Fifa World Cup to which team will triumph as the champion.

What makes a great football fan? According to the survey, 44 per cent of respondents in Argentina and 41 per cent of respondents in the U.K. said that a true football fan is someone who will support his or her favorite team even during a losing season. Other markets differ in their view of what makes a football fan a fanatic, including 23 per cent of Brazilian respondents who will watch every game of the season and almost 24 per cent of Italian respondents who said that they will paint their body in national colors to gear up for the matches.

The survey also probed into what fans would do for a ticket to the final, including selling their car or even giving up well-deserved vacation. Adding to the fervor, an average of 15 per cent of the global respondents claim to watch more than 31 hours of football a month, with 30 per cent of the fans in Argentina responding that they think about the World Cup 'every waking moment' when not watching the games.

Football and technology: A true match both on and off the field

With many fans dreaming of attending this high-profile sporting event in person, the majority of sports enthusiasts watch from the comfort of the couch. An average of 89 per cent of survey participants stated that they typically watch a football match at home versus an average of only 25 per cent who will attend the games in person.

For the fans at home, Philips provides home entertainment products to ensure they are immersed in the game. More than 45 per cent of respondents in Argentina, Brazil, the U.K. and Spain agree that a new Flat TV would create the perfect World Cup M home viewing experience.

35 per cent of fans in Mexico think that a DVD Recorder with Hard Disk would enhance the experience. Providing a colorful element to the entertainment experience, Philips’ says that its Ambilight FlatTVs are ideal for sports aficionados and design-discerning individuals alike. Philips’ Ambilight sets create a better perceived image and expand the viewing area to ensure fans catch all of the action on the field.

Although there is a certain thrill to attending the game in person, sports enthusiasts believe watching the World Cup at home certainly has its advantages. 57 per cent of survey participants believe they are in a better position to make an important judgment call in front of their television versus a referee on the field.

A true football fan will always remember those great moments of the game that make the World Cup an exciting and dramatic international sporting event in the world. The great moments are more than a memory to many fans thanks to some of the technology that has changed the game of football. More than 50 per cent of global survey respondents said that instant replay is the technology that has most influenced the game of football.

When asked which team will be the most feared nearly 70 per cent of the survey respondents named Brazil, which was also named by more than half of the survey respondents as the clear favorite to win the World Cup. The rest of the world will also have their eyes set on the Brazilian team with 64 per cent of respondents outside of Brazil watching this exciting team during the World Cup.

With Brazilian football star Ronaldinho, who was selected by nearly 62 per cent of the global respondents as the best player in the world today, it’s no surprise that Brazil is the clear favorite to win the World Cup.

According to the survey, an average of 46 per cent of the global respondents believe that Maradona’s “Hand of God” goal in Mexico in 1986 was the greatest World Cup moment, while 26 per cent of the global respondents feel that Geoff Hurst’s hattrick was the best highlight in World Cup history.

Keeping up with the FIFA World Cup™ away from home

According to the survey, nearly 70 per cent of all respondents will follow their team’s progress on the Internet while away from the television; yet new technology allows fans to turn up their FIFA World Cup™ experience a notch further, even while at work or away from the computer.

With time zones and work schedules posing a problem for the action, Philips DVD Recorders with Hard Disk enable sports enthusiasts around the world to control the game on their own terms, and never miss any of the action. Phillips says that its DVD Recorder with Hard Disk is the ultimate game and memory preserver, enabling users to record the game directly onto a DVD or preserve it on the unit’s hard disk drive.

This survey was commissioned by Philips and fielded to more than 4,500 respondents throughout Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, The U.K., Germany, Italy, France, Spain and The Netherlands via the Yahoo! global network. The survey focussed on both male and female respondents over the age of 18 with at least one television in their home.