China has announced that it will cancel hosting two friendlies that were scheduled for Argentina’s national team.
This decision came after protests over the absence and behavior of Messi, who did not take the field in Hong Kong with Inter Miami, provoking the anger of the local government which is effectively controlled by the Chinese.
As well as the fact that just 3 days later, Messi played in Inter Miami’s challenge against Vissel Kobe in Tokyo.
Argentina’s national team had announced a tour of the Asian country from March 18 to 26, during which they would face Nigeria in Hangzhou and Ivory Coast in Beijing. But the controversy surrounding the world champion, who until a few days ago was very popular in China, has intensified in recent days.
Spectators in Hong Kong who had paid up to 570 euros for a ticket to see Messi on the field, expressed their indignation for Messi’s absence but also for his behavior, as he did not address the public to apologize.
Meanwhile, the Chinese Football Federation published a statement announcing that the Asian country will not host Argentina’s scheduled friendlies for March.
“Many football fans have recently been looking for information about Lionel Messi’s match in Beijing. “After the verifications made by our services, Beijing does not currently plan to organize a match in which Lionel Messi would participate,” reads the statement of the Chinese Federation.
The cancellation of the tour in China is a blow to the Argentine Federation, which considers the Asian colossus a strategic market and where it has numerous sponsorship or cooperation contracts with local companies.
Meanwhile, the Chinese daily “Global Times”, known for its nationalist positioning, in an editorial published this week implied that the behavior of Inter Miami and Messi in Hong Kong were politically motivated.
Hong Kong authorities have been regularly targeted by the United States and the United Kingdom since the semi-autonomous territory adopted a national security law that helps silence political opposition.
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