美斯在日本踢球 - 令中國在受到冷落後的憤怒情緒高漲 (1/2)

Messi Plays in Japan After Anger Grows in China Following Snub (1/2)

Bloomberg - Alan Wong and Mia Glass

Wed, February 7, 2024 at 4:03 a.m. PST·5 min read

Comments by Hong Kong sports lawmaker Kenneth Fok accusing Messi and his US club Inter Miami of disrespecting local fans were among the top trending topics on Weibo on Wednesday. Another popular topic was partly entitled “Messi’s Mess.”

In a post on China’s Twitter-like Weibo late Wednesday, the Argentine World Cup winner told fans he regretted being unable to play in Hong Kong due to an injury to his adductor muscles — reiterating remarks he made Tuesday during a press conference in Tokyo.

“Friends who know me will know that I want to give my best in every game, especially when I come from a long way with my teammates,” Messi wrote, adding that he looked forward “to returning to the mainland as soon as possible to share the joy of football with you.”

In another sign the saga is growing beyond Hong Kong, the former editor-in-chief of China’s Global Times, a nationalist tabloid, questioned Messi’s failure to play. In a post on X, Hu Xijin asked why the star didn’t shake hands with Hong Kong’s leader John Lee, and called for an apology to Chinese fans.

“Smiling in Japan but sulking in China, what can I say?” wrote one commenter in one of the most upvoted responses to Fok’s Weibo post. “He has picked a side and shown his politics. Don’t come back again.”

Public anger could threaten Messi’s partnerships with Chinese brands. Hundreds of users flooded the comment section of a Weibo post Messi made earlier to promote the Chi Shui He liquor brand, with many calling on the company to cut ties with the Argentine.

“Lionel Messi can’t control how his 36-year-old body holds up over the course of a season,” said Brett Albert, senior lecturer in the McCormack Department of Sport Management at UMass Amherst. “But the promoters could have been a bit more up front with patrons about the likelihood of his injury preventing an appearance.”

China and Japan have a troubled history due in large part to Japan’s colonial invasions and atrocities committed during World War II. Government ships from Japan and China regularly seek to expel one another from waters around disputed islands in the East China Sea. Yet Japanese businesses are some of the biggest foreign investors in China and it’s an important trade partner.

(to be continued)

Translation

香港體育議員霍啟剛指責美斯和他的美國俱樂部邁阿密國際隊 (US club Inter Miami) 不尊重當地球迷的言論是周三微博上的熱門話題之一。 另一個熱門話題的部分標題是「美斯的混亂」。

週三晚間，這位阿根廷世界盃冠軍在中國類似推特的微博上發文告訴球迷，他對因內收肌受傷而無法在香港比賽感到遺憾 - 重申了他週二在東京舉行的新聞發布會上發表的言論。

美斯寫道：「了解我的朋友都會知道，我想在每場比賽中盡自己最大的努力，尤其是當我和隊友們已進步到更好狀態」, 他還補充說，他期待著 “盡快回到大陸，與你分享足球的快樂。”

另一個跡象表明，這一傳奇正在蔓延到香港以外的地方，民族主義小報《環球時報》前主編質疑美斯未能參加比賽。 胡錫進在X上發文質問這位明星為何不與香港領導人李家超握手，並呼籲他向中國粉絲道歉。

一位評論者在對霍的微博帖子獲得最多支持的回應之一中寫道: “在日本微笑，在中國生悶氣，我能說什麼？” 。 “他選擇了立場並展示了他的政治觀點。 別再回來了。”

大眾的憤怒可能會威脅到美斯與中國品牌的合作關係。 數百名用戶湧入了美斯早些時候發布的一條宣傳赤水河酒品牌的微博帖子的評論區，許多人呼籲該公司切斷與阿根廷人的關係。

麻省大學阿默斯特分校麥科馬克體育管理系高級講師 Brett Albert 說: “美斯無法控制他 36 歲的身體在一個賽季中的表現” , “但主辦方本可以更坦率地告訴顧客，他可能因受傷而無法露面。”

中國和日本有著一段坎坷的歷史，這在很大程度上是由於日本在二戰期間的殖民侵略和暴行造成的。 日本和中國的政府船隻經常尋求將對方驅逐出東海有爭議島嶼周圍的水域。 然而，日本企業是中國最大的外國投資者之一，也是中國重要的貿易夥伴。

（待續）