Footage has emerged of a fan kicking down a poster of Inter Miami star Lionel Messi. The incident occurred after Messi did not play in the team’s pre-season match in Hong Kong due to an injury. The friendly match took place at Hong Kong Stadium and was attended by 40,000 fans who had each paid 1,000 Hong Kong dollars (£102) to watch. Despite a speech from club co-owner David Beckham, the crowd was unhappy when they found out Messi wouldn’t be playing because of a hamstring problem.
Some fans even started shouting ‘Refund!’ in anger, and a video has surfaced showing one upset fan kicking a poster of Messi at the stadium. Despite winning the friendly game 4-1 against an All-Star XI of local league players, many fans were still not satisfied. The absence of the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner from the game due to injury sparked reactions from Hong Kong’s political leaders.
The Hong Kong government officials believed Messi was contractually obliged to appear for 45 minutes and expressed their disappointment with the organizers’ arrangement. The organizers were said to have received significant funding from the government and the stadium, but have now indicated they won’t take the money because Messi wasn’t able to feature in the friendly match. The CEO of the organizing company expressed ‘disappointment’ in regards to Messi’s absence from matters on the field and announced the decision to officially withdraw its application for the government grant. Se ha difundido un video en el que un aficionado derriba un póster de la estrella del Inter de Miami, Lionel Messi.
El incidente ocurrió después de que Messi no jugara en el partido de pretemporada del equipo en Hong Kong debido a una lesión. A pesar de ganar el partido amistoso 4-1 contra un All-Star XI de jugadores de la liga local, muchos aficionados no estaban satisfechos. La ausencia del ganador del Ballon d’Or en ocho ocasiones en el partido debido a una lesión generó reacciones de los líderes políticos de Hong Kong. Los funcionarios del gobierno de Hong Kong creían que Messi estaba obligado contractualmente a aparecer durante 45 minutos y expresaron su decepción con el arreglo de los organizadores.
Los organizadores habrían recibido un financiamiento significativo del gobierno y del estadio, pero ahora indicaron que no aceptarán el dinero porque Messi no pudo participar en el partido amistoso. El CEO de la empresa organizadora expresó su ‘decepción’ con respecto a la ausencia de Messi en asuntos en el campo y anunció la decisión de retirar oficialmente su solicitud para la subvención del gobierno.