Hong Kong World Cup fans told to avoid excesses

HONG KONG - As advice goes, it is likely to be as welcome as an own-goal or a missed penalty in a major tournament final.

Hong Kong’s Department of Health Thursday issued a set of health tips for football fans planning to watch the World Cup.

The advice includes drinking tea instead of beer, eating fruit rather than nuts and crisp and sitting properly while watching matches.

In its “Health Tips for World Cup Fans” the department advises fans to get plenty of sleep, not to buy rounds of drinks, take time to exercise and “to strike a balance between watching matches and fulfilling your social commitments”.

“Insufficient sleep can lower your immunity and make you prone to illnesses. It will also affect your work performance and increase risks of accidents and injury,” the spokesman said.

The advice is likely to fall on deaf ears as the six-hour time difference between Hong Kong and South Africa means matches will be screened in the early hours of the morning local time.

It will also be difficult to avoid beer and snacks as only one in seven people in the city of 7 million subscribe to the channel which will be screening all the matches leaving most people with no alternative but to head to the pub.

Some pubs in the former British colony are already fully-booked and several shopping malls have set up giant screen where people can watch the games for free. Fans in good voice will also be able to catch the matches at certain karaoke bars.