Beckham says fans must be controlled during Euro 2004

He praised the 60,000 England fans planning to travel and urged them not to cause any trouble.

The Real Madrid star said the fans must be "controlled" to help the national team have the best chance of winning the tournament in Portugal.

His comments come as England supporters were told to report hooligans during the tournament.

The fans give us a great chance of winning games and competitions David Beckham Beckham ready for France match

Home Office Minister Caroline Flint backed up Beckham's comments at the launch of a "Fans' Embassy", which will be travelling out to Lisbon next week.

"If people are aware that they are wanting to cause trouble, please share that information," she said.

Beckham said: "You would hope that people had learned by now that this (hooliganism) doesn't help the team or the country.

"When our fans travel we travel in numbers and you don't get that from any other country.

"You never see thousands of other fans like we get. We've got the best fans in the world.

"If we can control that then the fans give us a great chance of winning games and competitions."

Cause trouble

The Fans' Embassy has been set up to provide information, advice, a point of contact and a voice for supporters during Euro 2004.

Around 2,700 hooligans have been banned from travelling to Portugal so far.

But police are concerned that fans with no previous convictions could stir up trouble.

Supporters have been advised to leave up to three hours before matches because of security checks and numbers.