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Hong Kong’s government has expressed its “extreme disappointment” after Argentine football star Lionel Messi angered fans by sitting out a long-anticipated exhibition game in the Chinese territory.
Messi’s failure to play comes as Hong Kong struggles to rebuild its status as a global hub amid a sluggish post-pandemic economic recovery and a sweeping political crackdown by authorities in Beijing.
Many of the more than 38,000 people who attended Sunday’s game between David Beckham-founded Inter Miami and a Hong Kong XI chanted, “Refund! Refund!”, after Messi stayed on the bench. Inter Miami won the game 4-1.
Hong Kong’s government had pinned its hopes on the event to help boost the territory’s appeal. Billboards featuring Messi’s face occupied prominent city centre slots for weeks, and tickets for the game cost up to HK$4,880 (US$620).
Inter Miami coach Gerardo Martino apologised to fans in a post-match press conference but said it was too “risky” for the Argentine star to play.
“The Government, as well as all football fans, are extremely disappointed that Messi could neither play in the friendly match, nor explain to the fans in person upon request,” Hong Kong’s government said in a statement on Sunday. Hong Kong leader John Lee was among the officials who attended the match.
The saga also angered local pro-Beijing lawmakers. “This is outrageous!” lawmaker Dominic Lee wrote on Facebook. “Messi’s no-show has left many visitors disappointed with bad memories . . . [and] damaged the city’s reputation as a tourism spot.”
After the Hong Kong government said it would review HK$16mn in public funding promised for the match, organiser Tatler Asia said it was withdrawing its application for the money.
Tatler Asia had told the government ahead of the match that Messi would play in the second half, Hong Kong’s culture, sports and tourism minister Kevin Yeung told reporters on Monday. The government was later told he “could not play due to injury”, after which it suggested Messi could greet fans on the pitch, Yeung said, but this did not work out.
Under the government’s funding agreement with Tatler Asia, Messi had been due to “participate in the match for at least 45 minutes subject to fitness and safety considerations”, Yeung said.
Hong Kong’s struggle to attract big-ticket events has frustrated the government, with legislators in the city debating last month why touring musicians such as Taylor Swift had skipped the city in favour of rival Asian destinations.
Michel Lamunière, chair of Tatler Asia, said after Yeung’s remarks on Monday that it deeply regretted the “disappointing ending”.
Tatler Asia had had “every expectation” that both Messi and former Liverpool star Luis Suárez — who also sat out the match — would play, Lamunière told a press conference. He did not take questions on whether Tatler Asia would consider a refund for spectators. The city’s consumer watchdog said it received at least 56 complaints involving a total of more than HK$319,000, as of Monday.
During the match, frustrated fans chanted: “We want Messi, we want Messi!” as he sat stone-faced on the bench.
Mark Wong, who was wearing a Messi Argentina shirt, said he came to see “Messi and the Hong Kong team” and it was disappointing the star had not played. “People [in Hong Kong] love football,” Wong said, adding that they did not often get the chance to watch top international teams.
Messi and the Inter Miami team departed Hong Kong on Monday. Inter Miami did not respond to a request for comment.
