Lebron James Live in Manila: Witness The Ticket Frenzy

My July is really turning real good!  Apart from the better days and blessings that is coming along my way, my basketball idol LeBron James is coming to Manila!  LEBRON JAMES LIVE IN MANILA!  Yey!  The Meet and Greet is happening on July 23, 2013 at MOA Arena, Mall of Asia, Pasay City Philippines.

NikePH announced that the tickets for the Lebron James visit to Manila will be distributed for free at Nike Park in Bonifacio Global City, Tagig at 12NN of July 17.  I got excited and started monitoring the event.  However, when people started camping out at the ticket distribution venue I can feel that my chance to have a ticket is bleak.  In as much as I’m a huge LBJ fan and dying to see my idol in person for a once in a lifetime experience I’m not a camp out person (sigh).  The last camped out I did for non-girl’s scout activity was when Pope John Paul II visited Manila. Even then I did not camp out overnight.  I just searched my friend’s camp site out of the millions of crowd in Luneta and stayed at their camp until the Pope arrived.

Also, Nike Park BGC is not very accessible to me and my normally-chaotic-schedule would definitely can not accommodate some time for queuing or camping out. I maybe able to stand a maximum of three hours queuing for a guaranteed ticket but apart from that I doubt it.

Even so, I still headed to Nike park on July 17 the official date of release of free tickets.  I’m not expecting that I could still get a free ticket.  But I want to witness and feel the fans frenzy on James visit.   So I was there at exactly 12NN in spite of hubby’s de-motivation reasoning about the weather (it was raining), the risk of stampede or trouble-making people.

The very organized queue at Nike Park BGC main entrance during the distribution of the actual tickets for the early campers.

It was easy to befriend anyone probably because we share a common denominator – we are all James’ fans.   In half an hour I was chatting with fellow fans like we were long time friends.  They share to me their stories and let me share them with you.

During the heavy downpour on Tuesday night the Nike people decided to give the early campers a claim stub and marked their fingers an indelible ink  so they could go home for the night and rest.  Some of the campers were there since Monday night.  The color of the stubs are yellow, then green, then blue. Each color of stub has a designated claim time.  Later I learned that all those who has the yellow, green and blue stamps got Upper Box” tickets.  I’m not sure if there are other stub colors.

The distribution procedure was very strict.  Claimers should present their claim stub plus, show the indelible ink- marked finger and a valid ID. The ID will then be stamped with red indelible ink and will be recorded. Some were not lucky enough to get the free tickets.  In spite that they queued the night before and have the stubs they don’t have an ID with them (tsk!). They reasoned that there was no announcement that an ID is required.

Jordan and friends are among the lucky fans who got UPPER BOX tickets.
Two of their friends were not lucky enough because they can't present an ID during the distribution

They deserved these tickets considering what they did for a chance to see their idol.  They were  there since daytime of Tuesday until the heavy downpour on Tuesday night.  Those who got tickets earlier than them were there since Monday night (OMG!).  On Tuesday night during the heavy downpour they were given the claim stubs and were instructed to go home and just come back on the following day during the official distribution schedule (12NN). Good thing that Jordan and friends know somebody who lives within the vicinity where they sleep over.  It would be very tiring and expensive to go back and forth from Cavite.  Yes they are from Cavite!

The crowd enduring the heavy rain on Tuesday night  (photo courtesy of King James E. – the fan :)

While there’s an on going distribution of tickets at the official venue, there’s another very long queue at a vacant lot at the back of the Nike Park.  This is the crowd that I first saw when hubby dropped me off along 7th avenue.  I almost backed out when I saw this crowd.  According to the securities they stopped/advised the people from queuing because there are no more tickets for them.  They closed the steel borders that are enclosing this huge number of crowd.  I later learned that these people are just “today’s crowd”.  They don’t have the stub that were distributed the night before. The organizers announced that they may not be enough tickets for this batch however some people still queued to take their chances.  Apart from this people there are still lots of people from the nearby park and restaurants.  This is the first time I saw this place as crowded as this time.  I always mentioned from my other posts that this Nike Park is one of my favorite place and I have several photos taken from here and it is always not crowded

The view from 7th Avenue (across the street).

Media vans from almost all stations were present and there’s a very tight security forced stationed in each every corner. There were also ambulances.

Order of the day is a “James #6” Miami Jersey.  There’s always one wearing in every few yards.  I’m not wearing mine that day.



The ticket distribution for those with claim stubs is still on going until I left.  There was no sign of trouble.  I could say that the ticket distribution is very organized and the security people handled the event successfully – kudos to the organizers!

The Nike people announced that ticket selling is prohibited and that they will take actions against those who will make business out of it. Oh well that seem some kind of “mission impossible”.  Several meters away from the Nike Park, I still can hear people whispering about ticket selling and bargaining.  Some elite-looking people (even foreigners) were asking for tickets for sale. 

I myself is not into buying free tickets (“scalpering”).  I will just dream that somebody will throw me a free ticket (wish ko lang), if not I will just find a way to see James out of the meet and greet event.  Anyway my being a big fan does not stop in not seeing him in person.

Anyway for those fanatic who will do everything to secure a ticket from scalpers – make sure that the tickets are not fake okay?  Here take a look of the sample of a real LeBron James Live in Manila free ticket (Wink*)!

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