Saturday, April 22, 2006 | 22:00
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MILLIONS of football fans across England will be praying for success in the World Cup - but in Ipswich scores of people will be going to church in the hope of seeing the Three Lions ascend into immortality.
England's first-round matches are to be shown on a big screen at the St Nicholas Centre as part of a meal package aimed firmly at the corporate customer.
Officials at the centre are quick to point that they are not going into competition with pubs and social clubs giving fans the chance to drink as they watch the team.
They will be producing appropriate dishes to go with the meal - although promise that there won't be too much of a Paraguayan flavour when England plays the South American team on June 10.
Claire Graves from the centre said: “Someone said that the Paraguayan national dish is roasted guinea pig. I can assure customers that we won't be serving that!
“But we will be looking at providing appropriate dishes and drinks to accompany the matches - the Swedish cocktail will be interesting!”
St Nicholas Centre opened last year as a conference venue with its own restaurant. It is owned and run by the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich and is linked to its offices.
It installed a large-screen television earlier this year to provide an extra facility for conferences - and that will be used to screen the World Cup matches.
The centre will be able to accommodate eight tables of eight people each - a total of 64 covers - and is inviting business to book tables as a form of corporate hospitality.
“We aren't advertising this generally, people won't be able to turn up on the day. But we think there is a good market for this kind of entertainment during the World Cup,” said Ms Graves.