It will not be the flag-waving festival that British fans have come to expect, but sports addicts will still be wrestling the remote when Euro 2008 begins next weekend.

Gary Lineker will attempt to whip up interest in Switzerland versus the Czech Republic, when the tournament, lacking any of the home nations, kicks off in Basle next Saturday teatime.

The BBC and ITV were already committed to showing all 31 games live and the tournament will take over the evening schedules. Even Doctor Who has been moved back for the Swiss opener on BBC One.

However, BBC schedulers balked at moving the final of The Apprentice, expected to attract eight million viewers, on Wednesday, June 11.

When the BBC was allocated Switzerland versus Turkey as a prime-time offering in the fixture carve-up, a decision was made to shunt the game to BBC Two.

The broadcaster hopes that fans of the beautiful game will find something to cheer without the drama of England penalty shootouts.

Phil Bigwood, executive producer, BBC Sport, said: “There will be nearly 50 players at this year's tournament who play regularly in the Premier League. So even without any home nation teams involved viewers will get to watch footballers they recognise, meaning there will be a lot of familiar faces to make the games more appealing.”

The BBC has set up a “Who Will You Support?” web page. Southampton fans are invited to back Poland, for whom the club's striker Marek Saganowski is expected to play a leading role. ITV has sold 90 per cent of its advertising slots for the tournament, with brands backing the truism that if it's football on the telly, someone will watch. Euro 2008 is an opportunity for the broadcasters to show off technical advances. For the first time, all of the live matches will be shown in high definition on the BBC's HD Channel and electrical retailers are expecting a surge in widescreen sales.

Both broadcasters will simulcast all of their games online, making watching on the move a reality.

Viewers with access to the red button will be offered a BBC alternative to Motty's commentary and rolling highlights.

The interactive service will come into its own when Wimbledon overlaps with the final week of the tournament, creating potential clashes for the BBC.

The tournament, co-hosted by Austria and Switzerland, could also send Mozart shooting up the charts. The BBC yesterday announced that the composer's Symphony No.41 will be the theme tune for its coverage. In a move that Mozart might not have appreciated, the piece has been “reworked” by the hip-hop collective Unkle.

A special title sequence, set in an Austrian opera house, has been produced by Aardman Animations, the Oscar-winning company behind the Wallace and Gromit films.

Steve McClaren, the England manager who lost his job over the team's failure to qualify, will join the Radio 5 Live commentary team alongside Graham Taylor, another England boss branded a failure.

Sports fans will get a brief respite before the Olympic Games deluge begins in August.

But even Alan Shearer, the BBC's football analyst, admitted that something will be missing in Austria and Switzerland.

He said: “I don't think even for us the reality of England not being there will properly hit home until we're actually out there and haven't got an England game to look forward to.”

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