When a smiling David Beckham strode into the Hilton Hawaiian Village Coral Ballroom in uniform halfway through a multinational press conference yesterday, heads whirled, talk stopped and cameras clicked.

Women swooned in several languages. Men stared. University of Hawai'i placekicker Dan Kelly, who crashed the overflow event, was wide-eyed.

Just like his red carpet Honolulu International Airport arrival hours earlier, it was apparent that the celebrated English soccer star can stop traffic.

But can he create it at the box office here?

That is the question heading into and hovering over tomorrow's debut of the two-night Pan-Pacific Championship at Aloha Stadium, where, we're told, just over 10,000 tickets had been sold for the opener as of early yesterday.

Promoters of the event are no doubt hopeful a Beckham buzz will lift sales for the inaugural four-team tournament. It is, after all, what prompted Major League Soccer to invest $6.5 million a year for five years in the former English captain last year.

They weren't shelling out that much just for an aging (now 32 years old) midfielder, even one with a trademark kick. Good thing, too, because with an early-season knee injury, Beckham played in just five regular season games for a Los Angeles Galaxy team that didn't make the MLS playoffs.

What the MLS was seeking was a Hollywood marketing machine, complete with trophy wife and movie title resume, for a sport trying to find its way up the professional sport ladder in this country. The kind of a package that will carry the beautiful game beyond the sports crowd.

Which is why "Us" magazine had a representative along with the sport media yesterday. It is why a crew from Nippon TV will follow Beckham whether he is on the field or not and the most breathless question concerned the current whereabouts of Beckham's wife, Victoria. (Reportedly not here). Things you don't get when, say, Edson Buddle of the Galaxy hits town.

Pro soccer tried aging great players before. Including the best one. The legendary Pele played at Aloha Stadium in 1976 in his New York Cosmos days. Most of the 21,705 that showed up came to see him and were treated to a four-goal performance.

But when he left so did the excitement. The North American Soccer League faded.

Now, a generation later, it is up to Beckham to generate a buzz and a following for the MLS in places like Hawai'i.

Gamba Osaka defender Satoshi Yamaguchi said he is looking forward to playing against Beckham, whose career he has followed from TV. But, Yamaguchi said, "I thought, perhaps, he was a little bit taller."

Soccer, meanwhile, is just hoping Beckham — listed at 6 feet — can stand tall at the box office this week.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.