UEFA have confirmed that English clubs will not suffer any ban as a result of the trouble caused by hooliganism during Euro 2000.

Chief Executive Gerhard Aigner instead recommends 'long, hard work' between UEFA, the Football Association and the UK government to eradicate the kind of behaviour that led to the arrests of over 900 fans during the group match phase.

England were threatened with expulsion from the tournament had there been any repetition of the disgraceful scenes witnessed in Brussels and Charleroi.

But Aigner said: 'First I insist on saying loud and clear that we must not exclude English clubs or England international teams because when there is an international competition held in England there is never the slightest problem. It's curious, isn't it?

'I think rather we must work in depth with the FA and the English government. It will be long hard work but we must give ourselves the means of eradicating hooliganism.

'We can't just continue like that just making idle threats.'

Aigner said that apart from the actions of a minority of fans, Europe should be proud of Euro 2000 so far.

'We Europeans can be proud of the spectacle on show. The play is of high quality. At that level I feel a great satisfaction like the people in the stadia.

'But as for the rest there is this black veil which was drawn at Charleroi by English fans who had no tickets and were beyond control.

'I did not like that and I can not learn to live with this vision of football.'

English clubs were banned from European competition for five years in the aftermath of the Heysel disaster in Brussels when 39 fans died when a wall collapsed after Liverpool fans charged their Juventus counterparts before the European Cup final.