In the days leading up to the start of the Chinese New Year, the hottest topic on Chinese social media was not about the upcoming celebration – everyone was talking about soccer instead. Why? Because of the Inter Miami CF match in Hong Kong, featuring none other than the Argentine soccer superstar Lionel Messi.
After winning the World Cup in 2023, Messi left European soccer to join David Beckham’s American professional soccer club, Inter Miami CF. Starting in 2024, the team planned a series of preseason exhibition matches, including matches against Dallas FC, Al Hilal, Al-Nasr, Hong Kong, and Vissel Kobe.
On February 4th, the Hong Kong Stadium, filled with nearly 40,000 fans, finally hosted the legendary Lionel Messi. However, according to on-site reports, Messi, wearing casual pants and shoes instead of soccer cleats and shorts, spent the entire time on the bench.
Frustration among the audience grew, leading to an outbreak of boos due to Messi’s continuous absence. By the 80th minute, some fans started leaving, and chants of “refund” persisted, overshadowing the post-match speech of Inter Miami’s president David Beckham.
As the game concluded, additional videos and images from the scene spread online, fueling further discussion among netizens. One video depicted Messi quickly leaving the stadium without engaging with fans, while another showed a furious supporter kicking over Messi’s advertising board. Enraged fans flooded Messi and the team’s social media platforms with comments, demanding refunds and an apology.
On major football social media platforms in mainland China, such as Dongqiudi (懂球帝) and Hupu (虎扑), netizens engaged in heated discussions. Some expressed understanding, stating that if Messi was injured and couldn’t play, fans should be more tolerant. However, a majority of fans voiced anger and found it hard to accept.
A Web of Confusion
So what actually happened in Hong Kong? In the days following the controversial match, different speculations arose about Messi’s absence, creating a web of confusion. Regarding the team line-up, the stadium’s player list indicated that Messi was on the substitutes’ bench, which meant that he might play in the game. However, in the official Inter Miami CF lineup released on X before the game, Messi was not included at all.
Messi is missing, artwork by the Hong-Kong based Victor Chen.
Contradicting reports on contractual obligations also came out. According to a report by Hong Kong Economic Daily, the contract only stipulated the presence of star players without guaranteeing Messi’s appearance. Newspaper Ta Kung Pao, however, reported that the contract between Inter Miami and Hong Kong stipulated Messi’s presence on the field for at least 45 minutes unless injured. Tatler Hong Kong, the organizer of the exhibition game, confirmed this, and stated that they were only informed about Messi’s absence at halftime. Soon after that, Kenneth Fok Kai-kong, current chairman of Hong Kong Arts Development Council, posted on his Weibo that the organizers were actually not informed at halftime but only ten minutes before the end of the match.
In the post-match press conference, the coach of Inter Miami explained Messi’s absence, saying that the decision was made by the medical team on the morning of the match. At a press conference in Japan, Messi himself stated that there was some discomfort in his adductor muscles, with swelling revealed in the MRI results. It was not classified as a muscle injury, but still caused discomfort. However, Messi’s official account on Weibo contradicted this by stating that the footballer has an injury to the “abdominal muscles”. The inconsistency added fuel to the fire, leaving fans feeling hurt and enraged.
As time went on, the conflicting information grew, without any clear answers emerging. Currently, the specifics of the contract between Inter Miami and the Hong Kong organizers remain undisclosed. However, on Weibo, users drew their own conclusions, making the hashtag “Messi breaks commercial bottom line” (#梅西爽约突破商业底线#) a trending topic.
A Political Battleground
The Messi storm still hasn’t blown over. Following the Hong Kong controversy, Messi came on as a substitute in Miami’s game against Vissel in Japan and his 30-minute stellar performance sparked heated debates on Chinese social media. Messi’s appearance in Japan was interpreted as him being “pro-Japan” and “anti-China,” turning a simple exhibition match into a political battleground.
A controversial video of Messi not shaking hands with the Chief Executive of Hong Kong and other government officials at the awards ceremony has been widely seen as a sign of disrespect toward Hong Kong and the Chinese government. As anti-Japanese sentiments surged, accusations against Messi flooded football forums.
A video titled “Messi’s Double Standards in Japan” by football influencer “Dishang zuqiu” (地上足球) gained significant traction. Among other things, the vlogger alleged that during Messi’s time at PSG, he used Japanese kanji on his kit, while all his teammates used proper Chinese characters to celebrate Chinese New Year. This video quickly gained over 2 million views, intensifying accusations of Messi’s anti-China stance. “I am a football fan, but first, I am Chinese,” expressed disappointed fans in various comment sections.
Despite its seeming absurdity, Messi’s absence has really become a political affair. The Hangzhou Sports Office issued a statement citing “obvious reasons” for the cancellation of the two friendly matches the Argentine national team had planned to play in China in March. The Chinese Football Association also suspended cooperation with the Argentine Football Association, removing all news related to Messi from its official website and social media.
Five days after the incident, media personality Hu Xijin posted on Weibo, stating that this matter “should not be politicized”, while emphasizing that “Messi is not that influential”, and suggesting that Chinese people should “look down upon” Messi.
On February 9, the eve of the Chinese New Year, Tatler Hong Kong, the organizer of this exhibition match, finally released a statement saying that they would offer those who purchased a ticket a 50% refund. They admitted that the contract stipulated Messi had to play for at least 45 minutes unless injured. Additionally, they revealed that upon learning Messi couldn’t play, they requested explanations from both Miami and Messi, which, unfortunately, did not materialize. The statement also expressed the organizers’ disappointment upon discovering that Messi still played in Japan, feeling it was “another slap in the face.”
In the summer of 2023, it seemed like Messi’s popularity in China had reached its peak during a friendly match between Argentina and Australia held at Beijing’s Workers’ Stadium when a Chinese fan stormed onto the pitch and embraced Messi. The incident went viral and only garnered more appreciation for the soccer superstar, who extended his arms and reciprocated the hug. Now, eight months later, Messi’s reputation in China has hit rock bottom.
The Hong Kong match and its aftermath will have lingering consequences for Messi. Not only have his matches in China been canceled, but it will also take time and effort to win back the hearts of Chinese soccer fans. “We now know how much you love Japan. China doesn’t welcome you anymore. Don’t come back,” one person posted on Messi’s Weibo page, where the footballer expressed his disappointment about not being able to play in Hong Kong and wished his fans a happy Chinese New Year.
For now, many fans are still left annoyed and puzzled, with many believing that Messi purposely did not appear at the Hong Kong match.
One Chinese football fan writes on Weibo: “I believe that Messi’s actions during this trip to Hong Kong are highly likely to be politically motivated. Whether this was because he was involuntarily influenced by powerful forces or because he is actively involved in politics himself, I don’t know, and I don’t want to know. Anyway, I’m no longer a fan.”
Update 2.19:
On February 19, the hashtag “Messi responds” (#梅西回应#, 320 million views by Monday night) went top trending on Weibo after Messi posted a video to his account. He wrote: “Happy Year of the Dragon, soccer friends! 
Through this video, I want to clear up some things and once again express my gratitude to all the fans who came to support me and the team in Hong Kong, China. Thank you for your cheers, for your tifo support and love. Giving everyone a big hug 
”
In the video, Messi states he wants to give his fans the “true version” of what happened in Hong Kong to avoid further speculation. Firstly, Messi denies that there were any political reasons for him not playing in Hong Kong or playing in Japan, stressing that he has visited China many times before since the start of his career: “I’ve had a very close and special relationship with China. I’ve done lots of things in China: interviews, games, and events. I’ve also been there and played many times for FC Barcelona and the national team.”
Messi then goes on to say that the reason he did not play in Hong Kong was because of an inflamed adductor, which got worse during his game in Saudi Arabia. As he really was not feeling well enough, he could not play in Hong Kong. As his situation improved, he was fit enough to play for a bit in Japan, “because I needed to play and get back up to speed.”
He adds: “As always, I send good wishes to everyone in China, who I’ve always had and continue to have special affection for. I hope to see you again soon.”
Although many fans do appreciate Messi’s statement, there are also numerous commenters on Weibo who still criticize the soccer player for not disclosing his injury earlier and lament the confusing communication surrounding the Hong Kong match, arguing that this video does not set the record straight.
This video marks Messi’s third response to the situation, following a press conference and a short Weibo post. The hashtag “Messi’s Third Response” (#梅西的3次回应#, #梅西3次表示希望再来中国#) also became a related hashtag.
Following all statements, some people have also had enough by now: “Are we done yet? Is it clarified enough now?”
Others argue that it might have been better for Messi not to post the video at all, as it reignites another social media storm just as the first one was calming down. The fact that the video was edited in the middle led to speculation about the omitted parts: what did he originally say? Why didn’t he release a video sooner? And why was Messi standing with his hands in his pockets?
In this way, the video seems to have a reverse effect, and however well-intended it may have been, it appears Messi is actually shooting himself in the foot.
By Ruixin Zhang and Manya Koetse
Featured image based on image posted on Weibo by @葡萄味的草莓萝妮
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