Federation Internationale de Football Association fines Hong Kong for booing Chinese national anthem

Fifa, football’s governing body, previously warned the HKFA over booing.

The BBC reported that the fans were venting their frustration at Beijing for its perceived political meddling in Hong Kong politics.

Channel News Asia reported that Hong Kong fans may have been infuriated by a Chinese football association poster in June, which portrayed Hong Kong players as “black, yellow and white skinned”. Photo: Facebook/Hong Kong Premier League.

The Hang Seng index slipped 0.1 percent to 21,831.62 points, weighed down by a 3.1 percent fall in China Resources Enterprise.

“FIFA has warned the HKFA that any further infringements will lead to more severe sanctions”, HKFA said in a statement.

Besides booing the Chinese national anthem, reports indicate that a juice drink container was thrown into the field by an unknown person – suspected to be a Hong Kong football fan.

The association previously said that it would be “disappointed” if Fifa punished them for the booing on 8 September, which it later blamed on “a small minority of fans”.

The warning sparked worries that Hong Kong may have to play the next home qualifiers game, which would be against China on November 17, behind closed doors.

The two teams’ last match ended in a thrilling scoreless tie with the Chinese team’s captain allegedly spitting in the face of the Hong Kong goalie and later calling him a “f***ing dog”.

The investor known as “Superman”, Asia’s richest man Li Ka-shing, normally lets adverse comment wash over him, but last week the 87-year-old Hong Kong tycoon responded to heavy criticism that he is abandoning mainland China.