Hong Kong authorities are urging the organiser of an exhibition match to explain star footballer Lionel Messi’s absence from the pitch, Chief Executive John Lee has said, as the city’s consumer watchdog received over 400 complaints over the captain’s no-show.
Two days after the the 36-year-old World Cup-winning captain was benched over a reported hamstring injury, prompting boos and calls for refunds from fans, Chief Executive John Lee on Tuesday told reporters that the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau is ordering the organiser, Tatler Asia, to address the incident.
Lee said Tatler had failed the meet the expectations of the public, adding that “the performance of the organiser has a significant impact on Hong Kong’s image and reputation.”
“The government also has the responsibility to ensure public funding is spent appropriately, especially when the event is sponsored by the government,” Lee said, speaking in Cantonese.
He added that he shared fans’ frustrations that Messi did not play.
Tatler Asia will withdraw its application for a HK$16 million government subsidy, chair Michel Lamunière told reporters on Monday. But despite the grant withdrawal, Lee said, Tatler still had a “social responsibility” to explain what went wrong.
Lee also called on Tatler to explain why it had not heeded suggestions and demands made by government officials.
Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Kevin Yeung said on Monday that the government had requested the organiser to “explore other remedies,” including having Messi appear on the pitch to interact with fans and receive the trophy, but to no avail.
Lee also said the authorities would review the government’s role as a supervisory body over “mega events” in the future.
Complaints to Consumer Council
Meanwhile, the Consumer Council had received a total of 401 complaints over the Messi fiasco as of 3 pm on Tuesday.
A total of 342 complaints were from local residents and 59 were from tourists. The complaints involved more than HK$2.59 million, with the cases averaging HK$6,459. The largest claim amounted to HK$23,839.
The Consumer Council’s Executive Director Gilly Wong told RTHK on Tuesday that the incident may have involved “misleading omissions,” as consumers were not notified of Messi’s absence on the pitch in advance.
“However, the organiser could argue that the information was already widely reported in the media. That would be common knowledge to the fans, and they would be aware of the risks,” Wong said in Cantonese.
Wong added that aggrieved football fans could file claims for expenses in addition to the match tickets, including airfare, train tickets, and hotel stays. She suggested that they hold onto their transaction records.
Shortly after Lee’s remarks on Tuesday morning, Messi told reporters in Tokyo – where he had just arrived with Inter Miami – that he did not feel fit to play on Sunday, even though medical examinations showed he was not injured.
He said that he felt that something wrong with his body during the first half of his match while playing in Saudi Arabia last Monday.
“After the second [half] I did an MRI and no injuries were found, but I still did not feel comfortable,” he said in Spanish at a press conference in Tokyo. Inter Miami is expected to play a friendly match with local team Vissel Kobe in Japan.
“In Hong Kong, there was such a big crowd. We really wanted to play but unfortunately it was difficult,” he said, through an interpreter. “I understand that people were looking forward to it so I do hope that there will be another opportunity in the future that I will be able to play in Hong Kong.”
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