The Euro 2012 fan zone opened in the Ukrainian capital Kiev on Friday with music, folk dancers and a parade.
Some 2,000 fans and pedestrians were on hand as opening ceremony head Oleksandr Mazurchak declared the 51,000-square-metre area along Kiev's central avenue, the Khreschatyk, open for business.
The enclosed zone features shops, cafes, seven huge television screens and a rock concert-style performance stage.
Food and drink prices inside the fan zone were some 30 per cent higher than in cafes outside of it, spot checks of posted menus showed.
The creation of a fan zone in Kiev has created difficulties for some city residents because of traffic gridlock on streets adjacent to the Khreschatyk and elsewhere in the city centre.
Kiev's Maidan Nezalezhnosti metro station, an intersection of two underground rail lines, is located adjacent to the fan zone. City authorities ordered it shut down for the duration of Euro 2012, forcing delays on some commuters.