Japanese fans rush to book Beckham's hotel room

Updated: Thursday June 27, 2002 05:48 a.m. ET

TOKYO, June 27 (Reuters) - The English soccer team checked out of their hotel in Japan almost a week ago after being knocked out of the World Cup but their rooms aren't going begging.

The remote hotel where the squad stayed during the tournament has been inundated with calls from Japanese fans, most of them wanting to sleep in the bed vacated by captain David Beckham.

"We are getting around 80 calls a day along those lines," said a spokeswoman for the Westin Awaji Island Resort on the small island of Awaji, some 435 km (270 miles) southwest of Tokyo and near the city of Kobe.

Die-hard fans, many of whom waited around the hotel for hours to catch a glimpse of the players during their month in Japan, may never know if they get into the right bed.

"We don't reveal which player was staying in which room for privacy reasons. We would do the same for any customer," the spokeswoman said.

Guests will get a chance to try Beckham's favourite dish -- cucumber sushi -- and to have their feet massaged by the woman who worked on the footballer's hallowed feet.

"I thought his feet would be tired, but he had good circulation because he exercises and the soles of his feet were pink," the masseuse told a local television news programme.

Local government officials are hoping to attract tourists to the area by setting up statues of Beckham, striker Michael Owen and coach Sven-Goran Eriksson in the tiny town of Tsuna, where the team practised.

Plans are also in the offing to rename a road after the team and keep their autographed kit on permanent display.

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