Intro:

Football fans celebrated - or commiserated - at the Donetsk Shaktar stadium in the Ukraine on Wednesday (June 27) after Spain edged out Portugal 4-2 in a tense penalty shootout in their Euro 2012 semi-final encounter. 

However attendance was not as high as expected, with some fans blaming the economic crisis in Spain.

Script:

Jubilant Spanish football fans were celebrating their team reaching the final of Euro 2012 after they beat Portugal in a dramatic penalty shootout in Ukraine on Wednesday night.

Spain won 4-2 on penalties after a goalless draw at the end of extra time.

Fans streamed out of the Donetsk Shaktar stadium after the match, however Wednesday's game drew a much lower foreign audience than similar games in the past. 

Most Spanish fans blamed the economic crisis back home, and this fan from Madrid said all this joy comes at a price.

SOUNDBITE (English) Thomas Lopez, Madrid, Spanish fan:
"The Spanish people are making a big, big effort to follow our team. At the moment it is worth it, but hotels, you have no place in hotels, you have to take the risk to go to the station and ask somebody to let you sleep in a private house. This country is not ready for this."

Spain are trying to win a third straight major trophy after claiming titles at Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup, and will face either Germany or Italy in Sunday's final in Kiev.