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The global economic turmoil is seemingly not deterring traveling rugby fans, with the Cathay Pacific/Credit Suisse Hong Kong Sevens selling out in two hours.

The Hong Kong Rugby Football Union expects to welcome 120,000 visitors to the three day event on 27-29 March 2009.

Tickets for the Hong Kong Sevens are also retailed through local rugby stakeholders including co-title sponsor Cathay Pacific Airways, rugby clubs in Hong Kong and overseas travel agents. Similarly to past years, the Hong Kong Rugby Football Union made 5,000 tickets available to the members of the public who are not directly involved in local rugby.

Combined with ticket sales to members of local rugby clubs and other rugby stakeholders, the rugby union estimates that 75% of the 40,000 event tickets were sold to Hong Kong residents. It was the first time Sevens tickets were sold through the website of Hong Kong Ticketing in a bid to improve purchasing convenience.

“The Hong Kong Rugby Football Union is satisfied that the sale was a smooth one. The continued strong demand for tickets from the Hong Kong community and international rugby fans is especially gratifying considering the challenging economic climate, and proves that the Hong Kong Sevens is the jewel in the crown of world sevens,” said Allan Payne, Executive Director of the event and Chairman of the HKRFU.

It was the first time Sevens tickets were also sold through the website of Hong Kong Ticketing in a bid to improve purchasing convenience. This reportedly left many disappointed when confronted by "server busy" messages as the website and ticket hotline were flooded by anxious rugby fans eager to attend.

A spokesman for the HKRFU said the system at times struggled with demand.

"We heard that people experienced congestion on the system on both the website and the ticketing hotline, while others have said they were able to get through," he said.

The Hong Kong Sevens' role as a key development tool for Asian rugby has been reconfirmed with six Asian teams lining up against the heavyweights of Sevens rugby.

China, Chinese Taipei, Japan, Korea, Sri Lanka and hosts Hong Kong join fellow invited nations Canada, Portugal, Sri Lanka, Tonga, Uruguay, West Indies and Zimbabwe.

Despite the current global financial crisis, organisers expect a capacity crowd to attend the three-day event, with other tickets allocated to local rugby clubs, sponsors and overseas travel agents, said the spokesman.

"We're not recession-proof but the Rugby Sevens is a bit like the bar business," he said.

"When the world is doing badly, we're doing well."

If you are looking to get hold of tickets to the Hong Kong Sevens, there are a limited supply available on Viagogo. They'll sell out soon though so act now to avoid dissapointment!