Yahoo Finance Hong Kong group withdraws from sponsorship over Messi fiasco
By Xinyi Luo and Evelyn Yu
(Bloomberg) — The Hong Kong-based organizers of a much-hyped football match in the city intended to showcase Lionel Messi said they have withdrawn from a multi-million dollar government grant after the star and other major players failed to participate.
Tatler XFEST Hong Kong will pull out of the grant program and “deeply regrets the disappointing ending to what was an exciting occasion,” Tatler Asia CEO Michel Lamuniere told reporters at a press briefing Monday night. The organizers were promised a HK$15 million ($1.9 million) matching grant and a HK$1 million venue grant, Hong Kong officials said in a previous statement.
Inter Miami initially told Tatler that Messi and Uruguayan footballer Luis Suárez were listed as “substitutes and therefore fit to play” just before the match with the city’s team on Sunday, Lamuniere said.
“Tatler Asia had every expectation that both would play,” he said, adding that at halftime, the club said Messi would not be able to take the pitch due to injury. The company spent the second half urging Inter Miami to tell Messi to address fans, “to no avail,” Lamuniere added.
Representatives for Inter Miami did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment from Bloomberg News.
Messi’s on-pitch absence prompted boos and calls for a refund, and marked a setback for the Asian financial hub’s efforts to boost tourism and spending in the wake of a crackdown on dissent and strict pandemic curbs. Inter Miami’s visit comes after music acts such as Coldplay and Taylor Swift decided to skip the city on their Asian tours, choosing rival Singapore instead.
“Outrageous,” Dominic Lee, a pro-Beijing lawmaker, said in a Facebook post, adding that the organizer’s failure to explain Messi’s absence hurt Hong Kong’s image as a travel destination.
Government officials told the press earlier Monday that it was “deeply disappointed” and gathering information over the match. Kevin Yeung, minister for culture, sports and tourism, said the city was withholding the grant money until it spoke to the organizers.
Yeung said the funding agreement was for Messi to “participate in the match for at least 45 minutes subject to fitness and safety considerations.”
“We immediately requested them to explore other remedies such as Messi appearing on the field to interact with his fans and receiving the trophy,” Yeung said. “Unfortunately, as you all see, it didn’t work out.”
The much-anticipated event charged as much as HK$4,880 ($624) for the most expensive seats and tickets sold out within an hour in December. A Saturday training session almost packed the stadium to capacity, with at least 10 fans trying to invade the pitch to get close to Messi. The US team won the match 4-1.
Fuming fans drowned out David Beckham, a co-owner of Inter Miami, after he stepped onto the field at the end of the game to thank fans for their “incredible support.” An angry spectator kicked a life-size cut-out of Messi, an eight-time Ballon d’Or winner, at the Hong Kong Stadium.
—With assistance from Pei Li and Jill Disis.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
