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Real mania gathers momentum in Hong Kong as betters cash in
Hong Kong, Aug 03: Real Madrid`s upcoming match in Hong Kong adding to soccer-mania in the city, where betting on the beautiful game has just been legalised
Hong Kong, Aug 03: Real Madrid's upcoming match in Hong Kong adding to soccer-mania in the city, where betting on the beautiful game has just been legalised
Exhausted and filthy after two days of queuing in the withering heat, Christy Tang can't wait to get home once she gets her hands on a precious ticket to watch Real Madrid play in Hong Kong next week.
"I want to go home immediately, take a bath and go to sleep" Tang said. Tang is one of over 2,000 diehard fans who have been standing in line for days hoping to obtain tickets to the star-studded match in Hong Kong, which will see David Beckham, Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo take to the field.
Hong Kong's soccer stadium has a seating capacity of about 40,000 but half the seats are reserved for the Hong Kong Football Association and its affliate clubs.
The overwhelming response has prompted organisers to bring forward the start of ticket sales to 9 p.m. on Thursday instead of Friday morning.
Regular tickets cost between HK$500 and HK$1,500 but scalpers are already offering them at upwards of HK$4,000 (US$513) apiece.
The line of people waiting for tickets stretched for over a mile with football fans huddled under makeshift tents, many playing cards or sleeping in the sweltering heat.
Real, whose popularity has soared 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.
The Sogo department store in Causeway Bay is taking the advantage of the soccer fever by providing shoppers a chance to have photo taken with David Beckham's figurine.
The Madame Tussaud's wax museum figurine sporting the English strip and captains' armband was a huge hit. Shoppers who want to have their photos taken with Beckhams' figurine would need to buy goods cost more than HK$100 (US$13) in the department store.
More soccer related promotion campaigns are being planned as the Real Madrid cyclone is about to hit Hong Kong next week. The Real Madrid phenomenon is just one example of how European football is spinning huge money in Asia - with massive marketing campaigns, kit sales and appearance fees plumping up the coffers of Europe's soccer elite.
But some of the money is destined to remain in Hong Kong as legal soccer betting kicked off in the gambling-mad city on Friday (August 1), with the government hoping it will cut down on crime and net over HK$1 billion (US$128 million) annually for public coffers to help rein in a bulging budget deficit.
"I love watching soccer. It's the first time I've bet on a soccer match," a 58-year-old man who would only identify himself as Poon told reporters before wagering HK$100 (US$13) at a betting station.
The entrance to the betting station was lined with pretty women on hand to explain the new game to gamblers. Hong Kong joins Macau, Singapore and mainland China as the few places in Asia where some form of betting on football is allowed. Other Asian governments eager for fresh revenue are likely to be closely watching the scheme.
The city's first legal soccer punter was Ronald Arculli, chairman of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, which runs all the legal betting in the territory and is its biggest taxpayer. Arculli bet a total of HK$100 at counter number eight, an auspicious number which pronounces like "rich" in the local Chinese dialect.
One of his bets was HK$50 on a draw on the opening match between Bayern Munich and Frankfurt later on Friday. With the odds at 4.6 for every dollar bet, he could win HK$230.
"Betting is a healthy pursuit provided, and I stress provided, you treat it as a form of entertainment. I don't know of anybody making a huge fortune out of betting," Arculli said, appointing to wall posters that read "Bet what you can afford. Know when to stop."
Punters will be able to wager on the winners, scores or total goals in top league matches in England, Germany, Italy and Spain as well as major international tournaments such as the Champions League.
Arculli told reporters that more than 10,000 people had opened betting accounts in the past few weeks, although they were not exclusive to soccer betting and punters without accounts could also place wagers.
Illegal soccer gambling has grown rapidly in recent years in Hong Kong, eating into revenues from other forms of legal gambling, such as horseracing and the Mark Six lottery.
The government estimates that punters bet over US$10 billion a year on football through small-time bookies, who are often connected to organised crime. It expects HK$30 billion a year to be wagered on legal soccer gambling with more than HK$1 billion ($128 million) likely to go into its coffers.
The government had originally forecast a record budget deficit of HK$68 billion for the 2003/04 fiscal year but now the figure is expected to be even higher the SARS outbreak left the economy teetering on the edge of recession.
Restaurants, hotels and bars across the territory are planning to host parties to capitalise on the soccer betting frenzy. But some civic and religious groups are against legalising soccer betting, saying it will corrupt the young.
A handful of protesters on Friday urged the government to help prevent punters from becoming pathological gamblers.
Bureau Report
Regular tickets cost between HK$500 and HK$1,500 but scalpers are already offering them at upwards of HK$4,000 (US$513) apiece.
The line of people waiting for tickets stretched for over a mile with football fans huddled under makeshift tents, many playing cards or sleeping in the sweltering heat.
Real, whose popularity has soared 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.
The Sogo department store in Causeway Bay is taking the advantage of the soccer fever by providing shoppers a chance to have photo taken with David Beckham's figurine.
The Madame Tussaud's wax museum figurine sporting the English strip and captains' armband was a huge hit. Shoppers who want to have their photos taken with Beckhams' figurine would need to buy goods cost more than HK$100 (US$13) in the department store.
More soccer related promotion campaigns are being planned as the Real Madrid cyclone is about to hit Hong Kong next week. The Real Madrid phenomenon is just one example of how European football is spinning huge money in Asia - with massive marketing campaigns, kit sales and appearance fees plumping up the coffers of Europe's soccer elite.
But some of the money is destined to remain in Hong Kong as legal soccer betting kicked off in the gambling-mad city on Friday (August 1), with the government hoping it will cut down on crime and net over HK$1 billion (US$128 million) annually for public coffers to help rein in a bulging budget deficit.
"I love watching soccer. It's the first time I've bet on a soccer match," a 58-year-old man who would only identify himself as Poon told reporters before wagering HK$100 (US$13) at a betting station.
The entrance to the betting station was lined with pretty women on hand to explain the new game to gamblers. Hong Kong joins Macau, Singapore and mainland China as the few places in Asia where some form of betting on football is allowed. Other Asian governments eager for fresh revenue are likely to be closely watching the scheme.
The city's first legal soccer punter was Ronald Arculli, chairman of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, which runs all the legal betting in the territory and is its biggest taxpayer. Arculli bet a total of HK$100 at counter number eight, an auspicious number which pronounces like "rich" in the local Chinese dialect.
One of his bets was HK$50 on a draw on the opening match between Bayern Munich and Frankfurt later on Friday. With the odds at 4.6 for every dollar bet, he could win HK$230.
"Betting is a healthy pursuit provided, and I stress provided, you treat it as a form of entertainment. I don't know of anybody making a huge fortune out of betting," Arculli said, appointing to wall posters that read "Bet what you can afford. Know when to stop."
Punters will be able to wager on the winners, scores or total goals in top league matches in England, Germany, Italy and Spain as well as major international tournaments such as the Champions League.
Arculli told reporters that more than 10,000 people had opened betting accounts in the past few weeks, although they were not exclusive to soccer betting and punters without accounts could also place wagers.
Illegal soccer gambling has grown rapidly in recent years in Hong Kong, eating into revenues from other forms of legal gambling, such as horseracing and the Mark Six lottery.
The government estimates that punters bet over US$10 billion a year on football through small-time bookies, who are often connected to organised crime. It expects HK$30 billion a year to be wagered on legal soccer gambling with more than HK$1 billion ($128 million) likely to go into its coffers.
The government had originally forecast a record budget deficit of HK$68 billion for the 2003/04 fiscal year but now the figure is expected to be even higher the SARS outbreak left the economy teetering on the edge of recession.
Restaurants, hotels and bars across the territory are planning to host parties to capitalise on the soccer betting frenzy. But some civic and religious groups are against legalising soccer betting, saying it will corrupt the young.
A handful of protesters on Friday urged the government to help prevent punters from becoming pathological gamblers.
Bureau Report