More than 40,000 fans waited for a glimpse of Argentine star Lionel Messi at the Hong Kong Stadium on 4 February. Unfortunately, in the end, they failed to do so, leaving only the weak speech of Miami International owner David Beckham and the angry "refund" of fans. What was originally a lively and festive football feast turned into a disappointing farce.
In the aftermath, Miami International and the organizers disagreed. Inter Miami coach Martino said after the game that it was a decision made on the morning of the game, and that the team's medical staff believed that if Messi played, it would increase the risk of muscle inflammation in his muscles. However, the tournament organizers said that before the start of the game (around 4 p.m.), it was still confirmed that Messi would play in the second half. The relevant person in charge of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China, China, publicly revealed some details through a press conference, including after confirming that Messi could not play, he asked Messi to personally give some explanations to the fans at the scene, or accept the trophy on behalf of the team. But in the end, none of these remedies were realized.
As we all know, the commercial events of professional clubs are different from the well-known national team competitions such as the World Cup and the European Cup, and its core attraction is those hot stars. Without the stars playing or even interacting with the fans, the market value of commercial events could shrink beyond imagination, and to use a commercial term, it is "the right goods". If you consider the scale of this business competition, the fields involved and the social and economic resources invested, whether it is Miami International as a seller or as a "booth" of the event organizer, such a result will damage your "integrity".
Following Messi and Miami International's trip to China in November last year, in January this year, the commercial match between Ronaldo and Riyadh was forced to be postponed due to Ronaldo's injury. In addition, this time the team came but Messi did not play, and in less than 3 months, Messi and Ronaldo, the two superstars of world football, failed to hold a commercial match in China. If there were all kinds of accidents in the first two times, then the farce of Miami International's trip to Hong Kong this time has to make people wonder whether such a commercial event can still be supported by Chinese fans in the future. As one of the world's largest fan markets, once the trust of fans and the market is lost because of such an incident, I am afraid that the loss will not only be those well-known clubs, but even affect the credibility of football itself.
In the future, there will be more such commercial events in China, and I hope that these clubs and tournament organizers will not continue to consume the enthusiasm and trust of fans, and put more efforts on promoting a successful "star show", rather than repeatedly "bouncing tickets" to repay those fans who are willing to pay for the game.