Sevens Fever

Once a year, Hong Kong puts its best face forward and hosts the Rugby Sevens, a world-class sporting event the likes of which you’ll find in only a handful of cities scattered across the globe. A three-day, one-sport Olympics, the tournament sees twenty-four countries vying for the championship cup, plate, bowl and shield over one incredible weekend. The city goes crazy for the event, with an influx of over 21,000 overseas visitors merging with Hong Kong’s already-massive permanent population. Although the sport itself is the reason behind the weekend, the atmosphere, costumes and post-rugby revelry are just as memorable for most of the crowd.

This past weekend saw the 2011 installment of the Hong Kong Sevens, and the event was simply—for lack of a better world—awesome. Last year, in a cruel twist of fate, I wound up in the UK on Sevens Weekend. Although I had a phenomenal experience working out of our London office for those three weeks in March 2010, I was extremely disappointed to miss what I had long been told was the ne plus ultra of Hong Kong weekends. And by only a day or so, to boot! But time flies, and before long, the first strains of Sevens Fever started hitting Hong Kong again in anticipation.

Cathay Pacific, one of the event's two major sponsors,

put together this clever commerical for this year's Sevens

The rugby itself takes place over the course of a weekend, from Friday afternoon through Sunday evening, including the centerpiece showcase all day Saturday. But the first traces of the virus become apparent months before, and amplify with the flood of arriving visitors in the week leading up to the big event. Hong Kong is a noticeably charged city as the Sevens approaches. From the commercials on television and posters around town to the articles in the newspapers and posts online, it is obvious that something special is in the works.

Tickets to the Sevens go on sale in late January, and they sell out in mere minutes. Over the next two months, Hongkongers and overseas visitors alike are on the hunt! The face value of a three day pass is HK$1250, but last Thursday I heard of people selling their Saturday-only tickets for upwards of HK$3500! The whole week was on the slow side business-wise, and the only reason for this was Sevens Fever. Everybody was preoccupied with costume planning and scrambling for tickets.

You see, the most popular place in the stadium is the infamous South Stands, and this area is renowned for the colorful and creative group costumes its inhabitants spend weeks or even months putting together. My coworker Kevin went with his soccer team as Egyptian pharaohs, and other popular costumes included numerous Colonel Gaddafis, Black Swan ballerinas, Michael Jacksons, toy soldiers and sombrero-donning Mexicans, in honor of Mexico’s first-time participation in the tournament.

Gaddafi costumes outside the stadium

As visitors arrive during the week, the restaurants and bars are full of patrons, with crowds spilling out onto the sidewalks and streets. Each day seemed more crowded than the one before, but it was on Friday that things escalated to the next level.

Work on Friday afternoon literally came to a stand-still following the traditional “long lunch” and 4:30pm kickoff of the first match. Instead of selling bonds that day, I was on the hunt for a Saturday ticket, along with the rest of Hong Kong. Even Kevin, who had a ticket set up for himself, was looking for tickets to help out friends and friends of friends. I lucked out and found a ticket on one of the expat websites, and got to leave work early, since the market was completely quiet. And from then on, the weekend was a non-stop onslaught of sports, parties and an electric atmosphere. As dead as the markets had been those past few days, the city was roaring.

Saturday morning I made my way to the stadium bright and early, only to find out the South Stand was already full. Initially I was crushed at the prospect of a three-hour long wait, but my friend Rudi, a huge rugby fan, explained that we would probably be better off forgetting about the South Stand and opting for seats in the upper levels of the West Stand. You see, the South Stand fills up quickly, and after it reaches capacity, they institute a “one in, one out” entry policy.

Madness in the South Stand

But the North, East and West Stands are less popular and there is usually space. So up we went, and I quickly forgot my disappointment watching some world class rugby. The day flew by, and before I knew it, it was 5:30pm, and the South Stand gates had been opened for everybody to enter. I got to watch the last two games amidst the costumes and vigorous insanity, which was unforgettable.

The start of a match

That night, the rugby fans descended upon Lan Kwai Fong, Hong Kong’s most popular nightlife area, for one of the most memorable nights on the town ever. At times it seemed like the entire 40,000-stadium-capacity spectators had all decided to go to this one street! With the possible exception of Halloween, I have never seen LKF so crowded. But the atmosphere was one-of-a-kind, and I will never forget it.

Unbelievable crowds gathered in LKF on Saturday night!

Sunday was another day of rugby at the stadium (which, by the way, was especially constructed for the Sevens in 1994 and is hardly used for anything else over the course of the year). I got to watch the finals from the South Stand again, followed by fireworks and the award presentation ceremonies. The entire place was bathed in blindingly white lights, and by this point, not only was the South Stand packed but every section and seat appeared to be filled to the brim.

Since most visitors have early morning flights back to their respective homes, Sunday night is another packed, party-filled evening. The streets of LKF were bustling until the early hours, and I found myself incredulously eyeing my watch at 3am, grudgingly forced to hop in a taxi and head home, bringing to a close what had easily become the best weekend I’ve had in Hong Kong since the New Year. 

Even on Sunday night, LKF was packed with costumed rugby fans

savoring their last moments of the weekend before heading home!

Hong Kong loves its Rugby Sevens, and now I finally understand why. And I cannot wait for the 2012 version of Sevens Fever to take over this place again. Only next time, count on seeing me as part of a group, in costume and up bright and early in the South Stand on Saturday morning!