Lionel Messi's three days of adulation in Hong Kong ended in heartbreak for his fans as the Argentine did not take to the field in Inter Miami's 4-1 win against a local League XI in a friendly played in front of a sellout crowd on Sunday.
Spectators chanted "refund" and the Hong Kong government said match organizers Tatler Asia may face a reduction in funding after Messi stayed on the bench during the match.
The Major Sports Events Committee (MSEC) had granted HK$15 million (US$1.92 million) for the event along with a HK$1 million grant for the venue, the government said in a statement.
"Regarding Messi not playing the match today, the Government, as well as all football fans, are extremely disappointed about the organizers' arrangement. The organizer owes all football fans an explanation," they said.
"The MSEC will take follow-up actions with the organizer according to the terms and conditions, which includes reducing the amount of funding as a result of Messi not playing the match."
The organizers said they expected Messi and his former Barcelona teammate, Uruguay's Luis Suarez, to play and were extremely disappointed that they did not feature in the match.
"Despite some news reports, Tatler did not have any information about the non-participation of Messi or Suarez prior to kick off," they said in a statement.
"Messi and Suarez were deemed unfit to play by their team's medical department, to everyone's, including ours, disappointment."
Miami head coach Gerardo Martino said playing Messi and Suarez could have posed a risk of aggravating their injuries.
"Well, Leo has swelling in the adductor (muscle).... when we sat down with the medical team they voiced their view that it was very risky for this footballer to play today," he told reporters.
"In Luis' case, he has a problem with his knee. He woke up swollen after the second match in (Saudi) Arabia. So he wasn’t fit for today’s match.
"We understand the disappointment from the crowd who came to the stadium today that Leo and Luis were absent," he added.
