Part of the wine collection of former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has been sold for £2.26 million at auction in Hong Kong.

Further sales will take place in London and online in June, also overseen by Christie's.

A total of 257 lots were offered and 229 lots were sold, the auction house said. The collection on sale yesterday featured six bottles of Romanee-Conti Grand Cru 1999 vintage, the year Ferguson won the Champions League with Manchester United. This lot was to be sold with a team shirt signed by the former manager.

Ferguson said: "[Collecting wine] served as a distraction and gave me a balance in my life that helped me in dealing with the intensity and demands required of me as the manager of Manchester United.

"In retirement, I now have the time to visit the places and people that will feed my passion, so I felt it made sense to release a large number of the wines I had collected over the years. I hope many will enjoy exploring my collection."