Tickets are selling fast for the first international soccer match to be held in The Bahamas and enthusiastic fans are encouraged to take advantage of the low, affordable prices. It was confirmed yesterday by Anton Sealey, president of the Bahamas Football Association (BFA) and Director of Sports Tourism in the Ministry of Tourism Tyrone Sawyer that more than 500 persons from Europe have already purchased tickets online. The Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly known as the Spurs, is one of the biggest football clubs in the world and is headed to The Bahamas to play the Jamaican Reggae Boyz on Thursday, May 23, at Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium.

At the rate the tickets are moving and because the facility has a 15,000-seating capacity, Sawyer and Sealey said that additional seats might have to be added, but that will be determined leading up to the event. "The Ministry of Tourism is working in collaboration with Tottenham and the Reggae Boyz through the Bahamas Football Association. We have a plan to e-mail blast Tottenham members around the world," said Sawyer. "We are also going to have some advertisements at their games. The plan is to also put in place a landmark on bahamas.com, which is our online booking site with direct link to the Bahamas Football Association. "Two things are going to be accomplished from this event.

We are going to generate as much people as we could to come here and build the excitement for the games, as well as a platform. We haven't spoken about next year, so we at the Ministry of Tourism will have to make it known that we would like to see it happen next year and the year after. "We are building a platform to really stimulate sports tourism in a way that we have just described. We need Bahamians to know that a game like this is the highest level of football to be played anywhere in the world. Even if you are not a football fan, you should find a way to watch. This is earth shattering, ground-breaking."

The exhibition match between the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club and the Jamaican Reggae Boyz is scheduled as the first soccer match on the infield pitch, located at the stadium. Along with players, managers, medical personnel and trainers will also travel with the teams. Both teams are expected ahead of time. Director of Football Administration for Tottenham Hotspur Darren Eales and Captain Horace Burrell, president of the Jamaica Football Federation, are encouraging Bahamians to get their tickets. Both disclosed that persons from their hometowns, as well as fans of the clubs, have already jumped on the opportunity to buy tickets well in advance. Burrell said: "There are plans to have chartered flights out of Jamaica.

I think the big challenge is going to be tickets because there is going to be a rush for tickets starting from today. Coming out of North America, the number of inquiries that we have been getting out there whether or not this is going to happen, is just incredible. "The local fans should be advised to purchase their tickets very early. This is from my experience in Jamaica. We are a last minute people in the Caribbean, but I will use this opportunity to respectfully suggest to the local fans to purchase their tickets in advance." According to Sealey, tickets are available on the National Sports Authority's (NSA) website. He also confirmed that the majority of purchasers so far have been Europeans. Ticket prices range from $26 to $50. The ticket office is located at the Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium, and tickets are available between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian