Hong Kong fans boo national anthem ahead of soccer match with China
BUSAN, South Korea - Hong Kong football fans greeted the Chinese national anthem with jeers on Wednesday before their team’s clash with China at a tournament in Busan as the political turmoil that has gripped the former British colony spilled over to the sports world.
Hong Kong has been rocked by six months of mass demonstrations, with protesters angered by what they see as Beijing’s stifling of freedoms despite a “one country, two systems” promise of autonomy when the city returned to Chinese rule in 1997. The Chinese players, dressed in yellow, turned the opposite way to face their flag and belted out the anthem as it was being played, while boos rang out from the section housing Hong Kong fans.
Chinese fans tried make themselves heard in the cavernous 50,000-seater stadium as Hong Kong supporters chanted: “We are Hong Kong” throughout the match.
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