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Lars Hamer

Scenes outside Hong Kong Stadium on Wednesday could not have been any more different to just 24 hours earlier, when football megastar Cristiano Ronaldo pulled 30,000 fans from across the world to the venue in Causeway Bay.
What a difference a day makes.
Walking towards the stadium two hours before Wednesday’s 8pm kick-off, you could easily be forgiven for not knowing there was a match going to take place. Al-Qadsiah were playing Al-Ahli Saudi in the second semi-final of the Saudi Super Cup, by the way.
Long gone was the sea of Ronaldo shirts and the carnival atmosphere, while the crowd-control barriers looked more like a hangover from the day before, when 10-man Al-Nassr beat Al-Ittihad 2-1.
This time little more than 100 fans, mostly from Saudi Arabia, had begun to congregate from around 6.30pm. Those numbers picked up, but only a little, with at most 3,000 fans in the ground. Organisers initially claimed an official attendance of 20,165, before reducing that figure to 16,253.
In a statement, they said the higher number accounted for tickets “distributed for the match”, a figure that was “mistakenly announced” at the stadium.

“I’m proud to see the Saudi football teams here in Hong Kong,” said Al-Qadsiah fan Waleed Alsheikh, 38, who travelled from Khobar for the match and planned to stay for Saturday’s final.
“We haven’t won a cup for a long time, but I think with the changes in the club, we will do it. The league will be too hard, so this is our only chance.”
Beating an Al-Ahli side that spent big in recent years – bringing in former Premier League players Riyad Mahrez, Ivan Toney and Edouard Mendy – was just one of the battles Alsheikh’s side faced.
In the stands, fans wearing the green jerseys of their opponents largely outnumbered the red of Al-Qadsiah’s supporters.
Despite the post-Ronaldo slump affecting the number of fans inside the stadium, around 50 Al-Ahli ultras, aided by drums and a megaphone, were in fine voice. Without them, you could have heard a pin drop inside the stadium.
The battle on the pitch, on the other hand, was pretty much over before half-time, with Al-Ahli went 3-1 up after 31 minutes. By the break they were another goal to the good, and a man up as well after Al-Qadsiah’s Christopher Bonsu Baah was sent off.
By the end, it was 5-1, with Nacho Fernandez’s second-half own goal rubbing salt into some very open wounds.
“The players in Al-Ahli are better than the ones in Qadsiah, like Riyad Mahrez, Ivan Toney and [Enzo] Millot,” said Jawad Said, 35, who travelled from Jeddah and had business meetings in neighbouring Guangzhou afterwards.
“I’m in the mobile [phone] business, and sometimes have showrooms in Hong Kong,” he added. “After the match, I’ll go to Guangzhou tomorrow, and if we win tonight, I’ll come back for the final [on Saturday].”
Another stark contrast to Tuesday was the drop in the number of fans from mainland China. While there were still some, it was nowhere near the tens of thousands that came for Ronaldo.
“The main reason I came to the game today is that I gave my ticket for yesterday’s match to a friend,” Li Zhao, a 21-year-old student, said.
“I came from Shenzhen with my friend, but we only had one ticket for each game, and he loves Ronaldo, so I let him take it and came to the match today. I’m still excited to see Mahrez, though.”


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Saudi Super Cup

Saudi Super Cup: post-Ronaldo slump hits second semi-final, fans mix business with pleasure

Al-Ahli players face a small group of their fans ahead of their Saudi Super Cup semi-final against Al-Qadsiah at Hong Kong Stadium. Photo: Elson Li

A smattering of fans watch the Al-Qadsiah v Al-Ahli match at Hong Kong Stadium. Photo: Elson Li

Al-Nassr boss says Cristiano Ronaldo is biggest show in Hong Kong

Cristiano Ronaldo applauds supporters after being substituted towards the end of Al-Nassr’s victory over Al-Ittihad. Photo: Elson Li

Ronaldo fans flood into Hong Kong Stadium to watch their idol in action. Photo: Elson Li

Saudi Super Cup: Cristiano Ronaldo creates winner as Al-Nassr beat Al-Ittihad in semi-final

Al-Nassr players celebrate Joao Felix’s winner. Photo: Elson Li

Cristiano Ronaldo applauds supporters after being substituted. Photo: Elson Li

Sport

China

Hong Kong

Football

A day after thousands of fans jostled for a sight of the global superstar, only a handful turn out for Al-Qadsiah’s clash with Al-Ahli Saudi


A day after thousands of fans jostled for a sight of the global superstar, only a handful turn out for Al-Qadsiah’s clash with Al-Ahli Saudi.


Saudi Super Cup: post-Ronaldo slump hits second semi-final, fans mix business with pleasure

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}A day after thousands of fans jostled for a sight of the global superstar, only a handful turn out for Al-Qadsiah’s clash with Al-Ahli Saudi

A day after thousands of fans jostled for a sight of the global superstar, only a handful turn out for Al-Qadsiah’s clash with Al-Ahli Saudi