Abstract
Hong Kong has the assets of an events capital: strong policy backing, international connectivity and major new venues. Yet these strengths have not translated into a comparable share of international Western tours. A study titled “Events Capital in Waiting” by Hong Kong Future Economy Institute (HKFEI) found that among the international artist tours recorded, Hong Kong attracts a smaller share than Tokyo, Singapore, and some Southeast Asian cities. Why is Hong Kong missing so many of these tours? Attracting international productions requires more than physical capacity. Audiences need to be able to buy tickets with confidence, and promoters need to secure suitable venues while coordinating dates across cities. HKFEI recommends modernising and improving ticketing mechanisms and venue-rental arrangements to help Hong Kong become a capital of mega-events.
1. Background
Hong Kong has the mandate, funding, connectivity and venues to build a mega-events economy. Attracting more international events could boost tourism, create jobs and support local businesses, spreading the economic benefits beyond venues and organisers. This memo asks whether those strengths are being converted into international concert tours, and identifies institutional reforms that could improve the city’s offer to visiting productions.
2. Findings
- The study covers 174 documented multi-market concert tours that took place between January 2023 and September 2026, comprising approximately 2,900 Asian performances. Among the 95 Western artist tours in the sample, only 21.1% included Hong Kong—less than half the share for Singapore (49.5%) and far below Tokyo (74.7%). Among the 57 Korean artist tours, 56.1% included Hong Kong, which is relatively close to Singapore (61.4%), but lower than Tokyo (89.5%). Hong Kong appears on just one of sixty Western tour itineraries covering fewer than six Asian cities.
- ticketing arrangements leave fans exposed to fraud, bots and scalping, while ticket allocations remain opaque. Concert-ticket fraud cases rose 61.8% in 2025 to 2,805. Scalping controls are also weak: the maximum penalty remains HK$2,000, unchanged since 1950, and the resale offence does not cover venues managed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD). We found no requirement at any major venue to publish a full breakdown of ticket allocations. These failures can damage confidence in both the event and Hong Kong as a destination. For an overseas fan, an unreliable ticket purchase puts the whole visit at risk, including spending on hotels, restaurants and local businesses.
- government venue booking rules are poorly suited to international touring. Ordinary booking at the Coliseum and Queen Elizabeth Stadium opens twelve months ahead; earlier applications are considered case by case, with the criteria for earlier applications not clearly set out, no published advance window and no provisional-hold mechanism. Applicants must be registered in Hong Kong, and booking history counts when applications compete. These rules make it harder for international promoters to plan and secure dates. None of the Western or Korean tours in our dataset used an LCSD venue.
3. Policy Recommendations
We recommend two sets of reforms:
- Modernise ticketing and consumer protection. Require disclosure of ticket allocations and higher standards for ticketing platforms, while prohibiting software used to defeat purchase limits. Extend the ticket-resale offence to LCSD-managed venues and raise the penalty from its 1950 level.
- Harmonise venue booking with touring practice across Government venues. Publish a booking window of up to twenty-four months, with time-limited provisional holds, clear allocation rules and flexibility to move dates. Open eligibility to international promoters and provide binding approval timelines and guaranteed settlement terms. Make one government body accountable for securing international productions.
Full report (PDF): 《Events Capital in Waiting》
Online Appendix (PDF): 《Events Capital in Waiting》Online Appendix
