Football superstar Lionel Messi and his United States of America club team Inter Miami will participate in a groundbreaking pre-season friendly football match in Hong Kong, kicking off Tatler Group's first-ever 'XFEST' event between David Beckham's Inter Miami and Hong Kong XI in February 2024. As part of their inaugural international tour, the Major League Soccer team revealed that they will face a Hong Kong XI consisting of players from the Hong Kong First Division, at the 40,000 capacity Hong Kong Stadium on 4 February 2024.
David Beckham, co-owner of Inter Miami, former Manchester United player, and former England captain, who played in Hong Kong in 2003 with Real Madrid and in 2008 with LA Galaxy, is eagerly anticipating the team's tour to a “beautiful city with a great sports scene.” Beckham added, “Throughout my career, I have spent a lot of time in Asia - I am so pleased to have the opportunity to bring Inter Miami to play our first international tour match in this fantastic city.”
Jorge Mas, managing owner of Inter Miami, expressed his excitement about the club's first-ever visit to Hong Kong and Asia, stating, “From the very beginning we set out to be a global club at Inter Miami. This is a wonderful opportunity to do just that; we hope to enthuse and inspire new Inter Miami fans in Hong Kong and across Asia.”
This announcement follows Inter Miami's recent decision to cancel their plans for a two-game end-of-season tour in China, citing “unforeseen circumstances.”
With this change of plans, Hong Kong eagerly awaits the arrival of Lionel Messi, arguably the greatest football player of all time. With over 800 goals, 350 assists and 44 trophies for club and country, Messi is the most decorated player in the history of the beautiful game.
Messi’s accolades include a record-breaking 8 Ballon d’Or wins (2nd place is Cristiano Ronaldo, with 5), 4 UEFA Champions League titles and 10 La Liga titles with Spanish outfit Barcelona, and the 2022 FIFA World Cup as captain of Argentina. La Albiceleste beat the French in the final, in a nail-biting penalty shootout after a thrilling match finished 3 – 3 after extra time… not even a Kylian Mbappe hattrick for France could stop Messi from lifting the World Cup. Messi contributed 2 goals and converted his penalty in the shootout to lead the Argentines to glory. Talk about big match temperament!
Tickets for the Inter Miami friendly game in Hong Kong will go on sale from 15 December on Klook, with prices ranging from HK$880 to HK4,880.
Stay tuned to our website for more information and follow @lankwaifonghkfor the latest updates. Don’t miss out on this historic occasion!
