There are 127 identical cells, all containing white-tiled walls, thick frosted windows, a lavatory, sink, concrete bed and PVC mattress.

“We are fully prepared for trouble, if it occurs. All police leave and holidays have been cancelled in the city, we have brought in extra arrest vehicles and fingerprint scanning machines,” Roland Kresse, head of Frankfurt’s custody unit, said. “And for English people who don’t like coffee, we always have a constant supply of boiling water so they can have tea.”

Inmates, who can be held for 12 hours, are kept under constant watch by armed officers.

The prospect of a night in the cells was far from the minds of the thousands of English fans who arrived in Frankfurt yesterday. Thousands packed into the heart of the city’s medieval centre, making it their base for a day of drinking, singing and turning pink in the sun.

The atmosphere was generally good-natured but police were bracing themselves for possible disorder at night, with large numbers patrolling the streets.

• Two suspected hooligans were stopped in separate incidents at Manchester Airport as they went to board flights into Europe. Police believe that both could have caused trouble in Germany.