Nightmare in Hong Kong
Hong Kong's Decision
Recently, Chinese authorities have canceled two football matches that would've featured Argentina's national team with a growing backlash in the country against star player, Lionel Messi. Messi has received a drastic outpouring of criticism after he remained on the bench during an exhibition game that featuring his Miami Major League soccer team in Hong Kong. It was a sell out crowd of approximately 40,000 people in Hong Kong, while many of them were hoping to see the man widely known as the best footballer. The occasion ended maleficently when fans booed and demanded refunds as Messi failed to take the pitch. It is evident that Hong Kong's Major League soccer team and its fans though that Messi didn't want to play in the game as he thought his opponents weren't worth the risk.
Messi's Viewpoint
To respond to the back lash, Messi says that due to an injury, he was kept off the field. Although, this still hasn't stopped a wave of criticism coming from the Chinese internet. The latest sign of Chinese hatred towards Messi was on Friday, February 9th, when sports authorities in Beijing and Hangzhou said that they would no longer host the matches that the Argentina team was supposed to play in March. Messi and his team were supposed to take on Nigeria at the Beijing Worker's Sports Complex. But, again on Friday, Hangzhou Sports Bureau said in a post that the game had been canceled, " in a view of reason that everyone knows."
"The conditions for holding the event are immature and it has been decided that the event should be cancelled," the Bureau added.
Later in the day, the Beijing Football Association announced the cancelation of the remaining game, "Recently, many friends have asked about Messi's game in Beijing, Beijing currently has no plans to host relevant competitions in which Messi will participate."
A Nightmare
Messi still stayed on the substitute bench when Miami played Hong Kong on February 4th, despite repeated requests from the Hong Kong government to get him on the field. His coach later inserted that Messi was injured and that the medical team had advised him to not play last minute. Messi later added that this had been a "shame," and that he had greatly wanted to participate. His appearance in a match for 30 minutes days later against Japan only further angered Chinese fans. Many included pro-Beijing politicians in Hong Kong, believing that the situation was an insult to China. Messi now faces a public relations nightmare in the world's most important sports market where he had use to enjoy popularity from. Once again on Friday, Hong Kong match organizer announced that they would refund 50% of the ticket price to fans, a move that would cost the company a loss in about $5 million.
"Our aspiration was to create an iconic moment in support of the government's efforts to remind the world how relevant and exciting Hong Kong is. That dream is broken today for us and all those who bought tickets to see Messi on the pitch," said the company, appealing to the Chinese government and population.
Moving Forward
Messi did lose a very lucrative base of sports marketing, apparently violating the Hong Kong government in not playing in the exhibition game. Although, with his status, his still has a huge fan base that inspires fans around the world. With Messi being neutral in this argument, it will eventually make the Chinese fan base and government look bad, as they continue to backlash one of the greats in the sports of football. Without Messi, the game would not be as impactful as it is today. Hong Kong should've just appreciated Messi even being in attendance at the game, as he still brought many fans and ticket prices to that stadium. The Major League of Soccer with continue to have the back of the man known to be one of the sport's greats, and the criticism from Hong Kong will soon diminish as the season continues to move forward.
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