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[Awards Review]
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▶ Tickets for Korea, China Friendly in Incheon Almost Sold Out
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[2002/04/16 ]
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Seoul, April (Yonhap) -- Reflecting the growing interest in football as the World Cup finals approach, the Korea Football Association (KFA) said Friday that over 90 percent of the tickets for the upcoming Korea-China friendly match April 27 have been sold out.
Organizers for the match said that the high sales rate was the result of a desire by local fans to see the team play with a full compliment of players from the J-League and Europe. The level of interest shown by Chinese spectators and the moves by Korean companies to use the game to invite their business partners from mainland China is adding to the interest in the match.
The KFA and the city of Incheon said that although the figures were not fully confirmed, out of the 39,000 available seats, 27,000 have been sold through branches of Seoul Bank, while the remainder has been reserved for KFA sponsors, the Red Devils soccer supporters club and members of China's Chiumi, or 'soccer worshippers,' who are expected to converge on Korea's second largest port.
The Chinese contingent is expected to number in the thousands, with Korea's LG Group also inviting members of its Chinese soccer fan club 'Long Hun,' or spirit of the dragons, to watch the friendly match.
'The prices for the tickets are the highest for any international match held in Korea, but the response we have received has been very positive,' said a Seoul Bank teller. He said that prices for first class seats were 50,000 won, while those for second and third class seats stood at 30,000 and 20,000 won respectively. Overall profits from the sales of tickets are expected to exceed 900 million won (US$676,691).
Related to this, officials at the KFA and the Korean organizing committee for the 2002 World Cup (KOWOC) said that with China set to play their group stage games in Korea, as many as 100,000 Chinese nationals were expected to arrive here before and during the May 31-June 30 tournament.
yonngong@yna.co.kr |
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