Final preparations ahead of the Euro 2008 Championships continued apace in Switzerland on Monday, as the country prepared to co-host the football competition with neighbours Austria.

Flags advertising the tournament adorned the streets of the capital, Bern and a clock counting down to its arrival has nearly reached its much anticipated destination.

The Swiss UEFA Public Authorities Project Organisation (PAPO) has revealed that with just a few days to the start of the tournament everything was going to plan, with some areas even exceeding expectations.

PAPO has been monitoring progress in Switzerland since preparations for the tournament began.

The arrival of the tournament has been especially good for businesses in the capital, although things took a bit of time to heat up according to a vendor selling football merchandise in the city's main railway station.

"Last week was very good. But from three weeks it wasn't so good. But now it's coming. The Europe Cup is coming," Yves Verstaat said.

Initiatives like 'Train the Trainer' have been deemed a huge success with 330 people in the city having been taught about foreign fans, their needs and behaviour, with a view to passing on that knowledge to some 50,000 workers who will be dealing with fans during the tournament.

The project was mainly focused on businesses which will have direct contact with visitors, such as airports, catering businesses, public transportation companies and the police.

In the security field, international collaboration will be intensified in the weeks leading up to the cup.

Authorities began checking vehicles for suspected football hooligans on Monday with both Switzerland and Austria tightening security on their borders.

In Solothurn, Switzerland, political activists claimed responsibility on Monday for a firework attack on a police building used by Euro 2008 security organisers.

The attack was carried out in the early hours of Saturday to target the Swiss federal department coordinating anti-hooligan actions during the tournament.  A door was severely damaged but no one was injured.

During the tournament, Swiss police authorities will be assisted by colleagues from Germany and France.

The Swiss Army said it was launching its security and support operation for the European Championship with 10-thousand military personnel starting their service this week.

But despite the obvious security concerns, the atmosphere in the country was positive as fans from around the world gathered to enjoy the football spectacle.

"It is really nice atmosphere. I live not far from here and everyone has some flags on their cars. Italian, Swiss people, Turkish, so everybody. So it is really funny," one Italian fan who lives in Bern said on Monday.

The tournament begins on Saturday and runs through June 29.