Tickets for Lionel Messi's appearance in Oviedo next Thursday sold out in 13 minutes. More than 16,000 people queued online at once, a measure of just how badly Spain wants a glimpse of the Inter Miami star.
At 10am on Sunday, the Princess of Asturias Foundation released 4,700 free tickets for the event, part of the cultural programme surrounding the 2026 Princess of Asturias Awards ceremony. They were gone in record time.
Marca reported on Sunday that connections to the foundation's website peaked at 16,200 people simultaneously.
Messi will take part in an event aimed at children and young people at the Palacio de los Deportes in the Asturian capital on Thursday, 24 hours before he collects the Princess of Asturias Award for Sports.
Judges handed the Argentine the award in recognition of his exceptional sporting career, alongside his continuous humanitarian efforts to improve access to education and healthcare for the most needy children.
Joining the 4,700 ticket holders who booked their seats on Sunday will be 1,500 members of the educational community who took part in the "Game of Number 10" activity, run within the foundation's "Take the Floor" cultural programme.
Demand has been fierce across the whole programme. Tickets for two free concerts by American singer Patti Smith in Gijon and Oviedo also sold out within minutes.
A night-watching event in Oviedo hit its attendance limit too. American astronaut Christina Koch will headline it, discussing the standout milestones of her career and what she experienced on her space missions.