The alternative guide to Sweden

What do we really know about the 16 nations taking part in Euro 2004?

From their footballing pedigree to their favourite food, find out about the countries heading to Portugal.

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Footballing legend:

Ravelli: A legend and eccentric

Who can forget tubby Tomas Brolin and Martin Dahlin making mincemeat out of England at the 1992 European Championship?

Then there's the great Niels Liedholm - a member of the team that finished runners-up at the 1958 World Cup. And what about Henrik Larsson?

But perhaps the most legendary of them all is Thomas Ravelli - the slightly eccentric goalkeeper who baldly went where no Swede had gone before to make a record 143 appearances for his country.

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Dish of the day:

There is one dish that sums up the Swedes: smorgasbord.

No, it's not where you go to buy a new cooker. The word smorgas refers to an open sandwich, while bord is the Swedish word for table.

So it's a table full of open sandwiches? Er, no - it is actually a Swedish form of the famous Spanish tapas. So you can have a tray full of herring dishes next to a tray with cheeses, next to a tray of meatballs and so on.

Although the old adage says size does not matter, it does as far as smorgasbord is concerned. A small platter will leave people wanting more, but the large edition may cause altogether different problems.

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National treasures:

People made a muppet out of this chef

You're spoilt for choice here really - Ingrid Bergman, Bjorn Borg, ABBA, the Volvo, Ikea.

But there is one Swede who has managed to garner the heartfelt respect of people throughout the world - the chef from The Muppets.

Although most thought his antics in the kitchen were hilarious, especially when it involved him chasing the chicken, a minority thought The Muppets team were taking the mickey out of the Swedish accent.

But with lines like "Poot zee cheeckee in zee oofee" (Put the chicken in the oven), who could not fail not to see ze funny side?

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Eurovision pedigree:

Fact: The most successful Eurovision winner came from Sweden.

That's right, more successful then Bucks Fizz, Dana International and even Johnny Logan.

ABBA (a palindrome, word fans!) sung a song about a 19th century battle involving Napoleon and his French troops and duly won the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest.

Bjorn, Benny, Agnetha and Frida made up the quartet that would go on to score nine UK number one singles and 10 number one albums.

ABBA were the first winners from Sweden, but they must have turned green with envy when the Herreys won the 1984 contest, with the following stunning lyrics:

When I'm walking in my golden shoes.
Everything I ever dreamed of has suddenly come true.
Diggi-Loo Diggi-Ley
Let this miracle stay

Pure class.

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Swedish male dress: Not common

National dress:

Not many of the country's 8.9m inhabitants trek down to the local livsmedelsaffar (grocery store) in their national attire.

The women's dress is a cross between a Swiss Heidi look and a Devon milkmaid.

And the men's costume is similar to a dandy Shakespearean court jester, bar the hat with bells.

Nuff said.

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Magic moment:

Once upon a time, Sweden were the second best team in the world.

Admittedly, that was after their performance at the 1958 World Cup. But if it wasn't for those pesky Brazilians, they would have been top dogs.

After seeing off the USSR and West Germany, they lost the final 5-2, in front of their home fans in Stockholm. Doh!

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Nightmare moment

Perhaps, that should be renamed nightmare moments.

Sweden have failed to qualify for the World Cup on six occasions, while they suffered their heaviest World Cup finals loss, 7-1, at the hands of future nemesis Brazil.

Another embarrassing moment was current star Freddie Ljungberg sporting tight underwear on a large billboard. Too much information, Freddie. Or not enough, maybe.