Lionel Messi says he had no ‘political reasons’ for missing Hong Kong match
Soccer star Lionel Messi said his failure to play in an exhibition game in Hong Kong this month had nothing to do with “political reasons.”
HONG KONG — Soccer star Lionel Messi said that his failure to play in an exhibition game in Hong Kong had nothing to do with “political reasons” and that he has a “special relationship” with China, where officials responded angrily to his absence.
The Argentinian player was in the Chinese territory this month for a friendly match between a team of Hong Kong players and his Inter Miami, a Major League Soccer club, part of a global tour ahead of the start of its regular season Wednesday.
Fans from Hong Kong and mainland China who paid hundreds of dollars per ticket were furious when Messi, 36, did not take the field during the sold-out game Feb. 4, citing injury. The Hong Kong government, which had been planning to sponsor the game, demanded an explanation.
Their anger was further fueled three days later when Messi played 30 minutes in an exhibition game in Chinese rival Japan. In an editorial, the Chinese state-backed nationalist tabloid Global Times suggested that Messi and Inter Miami had “political motives” and that “external forces” were trying to embarrass Hong Kong, which sees such events as helping to restore a reputation battered by years of strict Covid restrictions and a crackdown on dissent.
In a video posted late Monday on Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of X, Messi reiterated that he had been unable to play because of an inflamed abductor muscle.
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