Hong Kong snooker boss defends high prices to watch O’Sullivan, Williams, says organisers want to deter scalpers
- Cheapest ticket to attend Hong Kong Snooker All-Star Challenge in March set at HK$880, with most expensive costing HK$3,380
- Exhibition event is being organised by Beyond Borders Sports Academy, with firm saying fans ‘can afford’ to pay more
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The organisers of the Hong Kong Snooker All-Star Challenge have defended charging almost HK$1,000 for the cheapest ticket to March’s exhibition event, saying they had set high prices to deter the city’s scalpers.
Officials pointed to the need to make a profit, and also cited the government’s call for the development of the sports industry in Hong Kong as their reason for charging between HK$880 (US$112) and HK$3,380 (US$432).
Gentle Hui, the executive president of organisers Beyond Borders Sports Academy, declined to reveal the cost of hosting the two-day event, but said the expense was “well worth” it to bring a host of international snooker stars, including Ronnie O’Sullivan, Judd Trump and Mark Williams, to Hong Kong.
“We don’t just want to cover the cost because this can only be a sustainable event only if we can commercialise it,” he said. “It won’t last long if we lose money and then just go get funding from the government and the sponsors.
“We as the sports sector also want to commercialise events and be self-sufficient, instead of asking for funding all the time.”
Tickets for the Hong Kong Masters in 2017 and 2022 ranged from HK$100 to HK$580, but Hui said the increase in cost for the exhibition at Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Wan Chai was “not beyond” what fans could afford.
“We also want to offer cheaper tickets for the fans,” he said. “But if it’s the scalpers who benefit in the end, I think it’s not fair to the players, the organisers and the fans.
“Ticket price for [Lionel] Messi’s match [in February] is also in the same range and the fact that we are playing at a smaller stadium this time, the stands are closer to the table, which brings better viewing experience and that’s reflected on the price, too.”
Just last week, tickets for the match between Hong Kong and Messi’s Inter Miami team, which were priced at between HK$880 and HK$4,800 sold out in an hour.
Fans complained that a significant number of tickets had been snapped up by scalpers, and some tickets reappeared on third party reselling websites online for up to HK$12,000 (US$1,537) a pair on the same day.
Organisers of events in the city have long been accused of not doing enough to prevent scalpers of driving up prices, and while Hui said running authentication processes granting ticket holders entry with only a matching identification card would definitely raise the cost, he was not ruling out doing so before tickets go on sale in February.
The exhibition event will see a total of six matches between six players, with O’Sullivan playing three times in two days. Williams, Trump, local favourite Marco Fu Ka-chun and Jack Lisowski will each play twice, and China’s Si Jiahui is set to make one appearance on the second day.
“There will be no winners, but rather if the matches are all exciting, the fans are going to be happier,” Hui said. “It’s not the Masters or a knockout competition and there will be bonuses for the highest break, but those will be announced at a later date.”
Organisers said they hoped to have 70 to 80 per cent of tickets available for public sale, with a minimum of 50 per cent guaranteed for the event, which takes place on March 25 and 26.
