Furious fans in Hong Kong booed David Beckham and demanded a refund after paying for tickets to watch Lionel Messi, only for the Inter Miami star to stay on the bench.<br /><br />Beckham, the president and co-owner of the American soccer franchise, greeted the 40,000-strong crowd after the game and thanked them for their 'incredible welcome' following Inter Miami's 4-1 win over a Hong Kong XI.<br /><br />But the Manchester United and England was roundly booed during his speech after fans paid as much as $460 for a glimpse of Messi in action.<br /><br />There was always a chance he would not feature due to injury but fans snapped up all 40,000 tickets at Hong Kong Stadium within an hour when they went on sale in December.<br /><br />It was reportedly made clear to fans when they purchased tickets that there would be no refunds issued if Messi didn't play. <br /><br />A tight hamstring kept the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner on the sidelines in Hong Kong along with Uruguayan forward and former Barcelona teammate Luis Suarez. <br /><br />Messi played the final seven minutes of their defeat to Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia on Thursday after reports emerged before the game that he'd been for an MRI scan on a suspected injury. <br /><br />Despite that, Messi had been heavily advertised both when tickets went on sale and in the build-up to the game and when tickets went on sale. <br /><br />There were chants of 'We want Messi' midway through the second half but he just watched on from the bench.<br /><br />One fan admitted she 'felt like a fool' after her partner paid $280 each for them to be in attendance.<br /><br />'I've been waiting almost ten years to see him,' Total Ling Pak-to said. 'This is a rare opportunity to see him because he might be retiring soon. We are very disappointed.'<br /><br />One fan, who paid $200 for his ticket, even flew in from Melbourne to catch a glimpse of Messi.<br /><br />'I flew from Melbourne for this,' said Marco Hu Kim-ming. 'We waited a long time but he never showed up. I'm disappointed.'<br /><br />Another fan, who forked out $460, was also furious. Antony Osazee said: 'I came for the training and just saw him doing stretches. Messi isn't a supermodel. People don't pay just to watch him sit.'<br /><br />The Hong Kong government has even issued a statement, vowing to take 'actions' against the organizers of the game after providing grants worth $2m for the game to take place.<br /><br />It read: 'Regarding Messi not playing the match day, the Government, as well as all football fans, are extremely disappointed about the organizer's arrangement.<br /><br />'The organizer owes all football fans an explanation. The Major Sports Events Committee will take follow-up action with the organizer according to the terms and conditions, which includes reducing the amount of funding as a result of Messi not playing the match.'
