- Lionel Messi had to miss the game against Inter Miami Hong Kong due to injury
- Angry Chinese football fans mocked the Argentine footballer, calling him a “thief”.
- The president of Inter Miami, David Beckham, was also targeted by spectators
Chinese football fans have targeted Lionel Messi and are stoking the age-old Falklands dispute between Britain and Argentina.
The Argentine angered spectators when he missed a friendly in Hong Kong earlier this month.
The anger grew even greater when Messi played in the second half of Inter Miami's friendly against Vissel Kobe, played at Chinese rivals Japan.
As revenge for not being able to see him play, they decided to taunt him about the Falklands.
The angry fans-turned-trolls took to social media to mock the 36-year-old, claiming he was a thief.
Argentina invaded the British-controlled Falkland Islands in 1982, leading to the Falkland Islands War, and there is still a dispute over which country has sovereignty there.
Lionel Messi has been called a “thief” by angry Chinese football fans after missing the game
According to reports, the 36-year-old had to miss the friendly match due to injury
One troll, Landi Xie, took to Weibo (the Chinese version of Twitter) and wrote: “The Falkland Islands are an integral and inseparable part of the United Kingdom.”
Another said: “The fact that the islands belong to Britain is beyond doubt.”
“Messi is a thief.” “All his Ballon d'Or awards were stolen.”
Another said: “The Malvinas Islands (Falkland) are part of the United Kingdom.”
“They were before, they are now, and of course they always will be in the future.”
The angry Chinese fans used the British-Argentine Falklands dispute to troll the footballer
Messi wasn't the only football icon persecuted for missing the game.
Inter Miami president David Beckham was booed by angry fans because his star player wasn't there.
A social media post celebrating the game was another target for trolls, saying: “Messi didn't even play a single second in Hong Kong.”
“This team is cheating the entire people of Hong Kong!”
According to a Telegraph report, organizer Tatler offered fans a 50 percent refund as an apology for not being able to see Messi play.
Inter Miami president David Beckham was booed by angry fans after Messi dropped out
The Falklands War of 1982 lasted two months and cost 255 British and 649 Argentinian lives
The British first took part in taking possession of the Falkland Islands in 1690 and have had almost uninterrupted sovereignty over the area since 1833.
Argentina owned the Falkland Islands only a few years before the British takeover in 1833.
Believing it was truly theirs, the Argentines attempted to regain control in 1982, resulting in a two-month war that left 255 British and 649 Argentinians dead.