“We haven’t paid any money,” the sports minister of Hong Kong threatens Inter Miami over Lionel Messi’s rest

The sports minister of Hong Kong confirmed on Monday that Lionel Messi was obligated to play at least 45 minutes in a preseason friendly that resulted in his Inter-Miami squad being jeered off.

Following his inclusion in the Miami replacement lineup, tens of thousands of supporters anticipated seeing the World Cup-winning captain participate in Sunday’s preseason game against a Hong Kong XI.

But despite his team Inter Miami’s 4-1 victory, the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner, who has a leg ailment, remained on the sidelines.

The approximately 38,323 people in attendance, who had paid up to $1,000 Hong Kong dollars ($125) to see Messi, erupted into unpleasant scenes.

After the final whistle, they booed Miami co-owner David Beckham and screamed “Refund!” They also waved thumbs down and tried to drown out Beckham’s words of gratitude to the fans.

At a press briefing, Kevin Yeung, Hong Kong’s secretary for culture, sports, and tourism, said that government representatives present had been informed on many occasions that Messi would participate.

It was finally revealed to them, ten minutes before the game was over, that his injury—inflammation of an abductor muscle—would prevent him from playing.

Yeung said, “We asked them right away to look into other solutions, like Messi meeting his fans on the field and accepting the trophy.”

“Unfortunately, this did not work out, as you can all see.”

Yeung threatened to withhold from the organizers up to 16 million Hong Kong dollars in public funds.

Messi said, “Subject to fitness and safety considerations, one of the key terms of our funding agreement with (organisers) Tatler Asia was for Messi to participate in the match for at least 45 minutes.”

“We have not yet made any payments. We will communicate with Tatler Asia, the organizer, in the next weeks.

“We will decide how to handle the sponsorship after discussing the performance of the entire event.”

In a statement released late on Sunday, Tatler Asia expressed their “extreme disappointment” that Messi was not included in the game.

It said, “Tatler did not have any information about the non-participation, despite some news reports.”

On Wednesday, Inter Miami and Messi are scheduled to face Japan’s Vissel Kobe in Tokyo in the tour’s last preseason game. Whether Messi will recover in time is uncertain.

The 36-year-old’s brief stint on the field came during Miami’s previous game in Saudi Arabia. On February 21, the United States’ MLS season begins.