WORLD CUP '98 NOTES - NO DRINKING (GASP) ZONE - IN FRANCE!

A 65-kilometre corridor in France is being turned into an alcohol-free zone
today in the hope of avoiding more violence by English and German football
hooligans.

Hundreds of riot police were drafted into Lens in advance of a match
between England and Columbia which will determine whether England remains
in the Cup.

The alcohol ban applies to bars along a coastal swarthe, from Dunkirk and
Calais, all the way to Lens. Establishments in Lens face being shut down
for eight days if they serve alcohol between 8 a.m. today and 8 a.m.
Friday.

A French policeman remains critically ill on life support after German
hooligans fought pitched battles in the town last weekend. Before then,
English hooligans had caused mayhem in Marseille.

The French authorities fear some Germans may be heading for Lens to fight
English fans.

Checked-by: (Joel W. Johnson)