FA Cup finalists Sham Shui Po need HK$1.5 million to save Hong Kong Premier League future
- HKU23 have already folded, leaving local top division facing prospect of having just nine teams
Sham Shui Po have issued a desperate plea for funding to allow the club to take part in next season’s Hong Kong Premier League.
The FA Cup runners-up need at least HK$1.5 million (US$192,000) by next Thursday to extend their top-flight stay to a third season.
Sham Shui Po accepted the local football association’s invitation to be promoted before the 2022-23 campaign. They had finished sixth in the curtailed 2021-22 Division One season, and lost the 2022 Division One Cup final to Tai Po.
When they were considering the FA’s offer two years ago, the club’s then head coach, and current director of football, Ko Chun-kay, said promotion would require Sham Shui Po to increase their annual budget from HK$700,000-800,000 to HK$5 million.
Sham Shui Po’s current plight has been an open secret in Hong Kong football, although club officials were reluctant to divulge specific information until the season concluded.
Five days after their dramatic 3-2 FA Cup final defeat by Eastern, the club laid out its predicament on social media.
