In order to watch Liverpool beat Everton in the 1986 FA Cup final on a 100-inch screen in Singapore’s Hyatt Hotel, hundreds of fans paid around £60 in today’s money lured by the promise of pizza, hot dogs and beer as well as, weirdly, the presence of Manchester United players.
The Red Devils had arrived at Changi Airport a couple of days previously for a friendly to be greeted by more than 300 fans at the airport, with Frank Stapleton an especially big draw. The Barcelona-bound Mark Hughes was popular too and trotted out the old “I knew we had followers here but not to this extent,” line. Kevin Moran, jet-lagged and talking about the need for sleep amid questions regarding his sending-off in the previous year’s FA Cup final, may not have made the watchalong party but a good time was had by all, especially Liverpool fans, in the Hyatt and elsewhere in the city.
