Real drive fans mad in Hong Kong
Exhausted and filthy after nearly four days of queuing in the withering heat, Gary Wong cannot wait to get home once he has his hands on a precious ticket to watch Real Madrid play in Hong Kong next week.
Exhausted and filthy after nearly four days of queuing in the withering heat, Gary Wong cannot wait to get home once he has his hands on a precious ticket to watch Real Madrid play in Hong Kong next week.
"All I want is a cold shower, then I'll jump into bed," said the 15-year-old student on Thursday, one of over 2,000 diehard fans who have been standing in line.
Wong, his school chums and many others have been in the queue since Sunday hoping to obtain tickets to the game against a Hong Kong XI on August 8, which will see David Beckham, Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo take to the field for Real.
Hong Kong's soccer stadium has a seating capacity of about 40,000, although half is reserved for the Hong Kong Football Association and its affiliate clubs.
But Wong's long wait will soon end.
The overwhelming response has prompted organisers to bring forward the start of ticket sales to 9 p.m. (1300 GMT) on Thursday instead of Friday morning.
Regular tickets cost between HK$500 and HK$1,500 but on the black market they are being offered at upwards of HK$4,000 (US$513) apiece.
Over 100 security guards and policemen have been on guard since early this week to pre-empt any trouble and queue-jumping, but that has not quelled Hong Kong's famous entrepreneurial spirit.
"I've slipped a few of our brothers into the queue. Send some more over," a burly man with an elaborate tattoo stretching across his shoulder from his chest to his back was overheard saying into his mobile phone. Half a dozen teenage boys standing around him nodded in agreement.
In many parts of Asia, elaborate tattoos are often a sign of gang membership.
The Real Madrid frenzy has also seized Tokyo and Beijing, where the Spanish club are also due to play.
In Hong Kong, the line of people stretched for over a mile. Huddled under makeshift tents, many played cards or slept in the sweltering heat.
"I simply love football, much like how women love diamonds," said Li Fong-yee, a 66-year-old granny. "I will buy two tickets. If my husband can't go to the match, I shall bring my grandson."
But not everyone in the queue was so enthusiastic.
"This is madness. I prefer doing housework," said Misi Dah, an Indonesian domestic helper who was lining up for her employer.
Real, whose popularity has soared in the Far East since they signed England captain Beckham, will play a local squad on August 8 as part of a series of pre-season matches in Asia.
Before that they will play in Beijing against a select squad of Chinese professionals mostly picked from four different A league teams, on August 2.