Messi mania hits Hong Kong ahead of Inter Miami friendly; police to close roads in run-up to weekend game

Messi mania has hit fever pitch in Hong Kong ahead of a friendly fixture between football team Inter Miami, captained by the Argentinian World Cup winner, and a city select team this weekend, with retailers reporting the US club’s jerseys flying off the shelves. Police on Thursday announced road closures to manage the numerous fans heading to the weekend activities, warning them against chasing after the players outside the venue. Sportswear retailers in the city have seen customers flocking to their stores in search of Lionel Messi jerseys ahead of the weekend. The club will hold an open training session at Hong Kong Stadium in Causeway Bay on Saturday and play a friendly match against a local select team the following day. At the SFALO jersey shop in Mong Kok, employee Jason Chan said customers started flocking to the store several weeks ago in search of Messi jerseys that were selling at prices ranging between HK$899 and HK$1,299 (US$115-US$166). The shop had a stock of nearly 200 Messi jerseys from three months ago, which were sold out in many sizes, especially children’s ones. “Normally it takes half a year to sell out,” Chan said. “But this time within three months we only have one to two left in stock, 70 per cent was sold in the past month.” Locals accounted for 70 per cent of the sales, while mainland Chinese customers also came to buy jerseys as the exchange rate in Hong Kong was better, he added. Messi in Asia: a visual explainer on one of football’s greatest living players Lam Man-chun, owner of the No 7 Soccer shop in Mong Kok, ramped up his stock of Messi jerseys by 50 per cent with a wider range of sizes and styles. “In a typical year, January is considered the off-peak season for my business,” Lam said. “However, this year witnessed a 30 per cent surge in sales volume compared with previous years.” Lam brought in 300 new Inter Miami jerseys a week ago, and by Thursday, over half of them had been sold. He expected to sell out before the start of Sunday’s match. A traditional junk boat, with Messi’s face on its sails coloured in the club’s iconic pink shade, was also spotted sailing through Victoria Harbour this week. Bus stops and LED screens across the city were also plastered with advertisements promoting the match. The release of tickets for Miami’s game against a Hong Kong team, priced between HK$880 and HK$4,880, sparked a buying frenzy with the initial allocation selling out within an hour when sales opened in December. The match will be broadcast locally by Now TV. Olympian City and tmtplaza shopping malls will also be airing the match live on large screens. Harry Kwok was among the fans who bought a HK$4,880 ticket. The 30-year-old swimming coach has been a Messi fan since 2013 and bought two FC Barcelona shirts at Lam’s store and three pink Inter Miami jerseys to add to his collection of 20 Messi jerseys. Hong Kong in talks with Inter Miami to arrange more activities during their visit As a loyal fan, Kwok travelled around the world to watch then football superstar play, including in Beijing and South America. “The last time Messi came to Hong Kong was 10 years ago, and I didn’t have the opportunity to see him then, so I’m extremely excited to be able to go this time.” To manage the crowds during the weekend, police announced on Thursday they would shut down roads around the stadium in Causeway Bay. Chiu Chi-keung, chief inspector of traffic on Hong Kong Island, said that Caroline Hill Road, Eastern Hospital Road, Cotton Path, Sunning Road and Hoi Ping Road, as well as parts of Hysan Avenue and Link Road would be closed off to cars in phases starting from 2pm on Saturday and 12pm on Sunday. Officers will also divert traffic to a pickup and drop-off spot on Cotton Path. “The force estimates that around 40,000 residents will head to the stadium each day,” he said. Yau Chuen-fai, the divisional commander for Happy Valley, urged fans to alight at Tin Hau MTR station to walk to the stadium and discouraged reckless behaviour. “As the roads near the stadium are narrow, residents should keep in mind public safety and avoid chasing after the stars as it can be dangerous,” he said. Yau added that officers would conduct checks on members of the public and forbid those without tickets from entering the vicinity of Cotton Path, Eastern Hospital Road and Caroline Hill Road. Messi visits Hong Kong: when is Inter Miami match, tickets, TV, itinerary Leading up to the match, the Post found about 150 listings for tickets on online trading platform Carousell, with some users slashing between HK$300 and HK$500 off the original price. One user, who put up a listing on Wednesday, said the two tickets priced at HK$2,980 for HK$5,000 were being sold at a 20 per cent discount. The surge in listings ahead of the game was in contrast to the ticket sales in December, when scalpers inflated prices by two or three times on the same platform.