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Lars Hamer

Plans for a summer visit to Hong Kong by Spanish football giants Barcelona remained up in the air early on Friday after an apparent misunderstanding over an email.
The visit’s organiser, Winman Advertising and Entertainment Group, said on Wednesday its request in early December to use the new 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium on July 27 had been declined.
Local media then quoted a Kai Tak Sports Park (KTSP) spokeswoman as saying the park received a request for Barcelona to play there, but not the further information and application form it requested in late December.
That drew a furious denial on Thursday from Winman’s CEO Edwin Wong Ho-ting, who said park officials had admitted the email containing their request for that paperwork had not been delivered.
Barcelona have agreed to play in the city, according to Wong – but it is reliant on Kai Tak Stadium or Hong Kong Stadium being available.

Late on Thursday, KTSP declined to comment further after Wong told the Post he “cannot work with Kai Tak any more” as a result of the mix-up. Wong said that KTSP had refused the initial proposal because the venue was already booked on July 27.
Winman issued a press release on Thursday showing a screenshot of an email dated January 8, appearing to have been sent by someone at Kai Tak, admitting the emailed request for the further information and application form had not been sent, citing a “technical error”.
“Barcelona have signed with us already,” Wong said. “However, one of the conditions is that Kai Tak or Hong Kong Stadium is available for them to play against whoever [the opponent] is.
“The thing that made me most frustrated is that they’re lying. They said they sent us the application form already, but the fact is, they haven’t. I’m very disappointed. I’m not sure I can work with the team at Kai Tak any more.
“They are trying to bully me by saying … they have already sent us the application form, but we haven’t replied. But the fact is, due to the technical error, we didn’t even know there was an application form.”
The Post has contacted Barcelona for comment.
KTSP has not said which event may have been booked at the stadium on July 27 before Barcelona’s request, but there have been reports that English Premier League side Liverpool, and other clubs from Europe, would play in the city before the start of the 2025-26 season.
“I don’t know if this is true or not, but you know, if Liverpool or AC Milan are coming to Hong Kong, maybe we can do a tournament,” Wong said.

Wong said that the Barcelona match would feature the team’s international stars, but if for any reason some of the big names were unable to play, partial refunds would be available.
He also said that if the event were to proceed, organisers planned to distribute half of the tickets for a July 26 training day free of charge to underprivileged families and communities.
Additionally, 10 per cent of all the match tickets would be priced at HK$80 to ensure accessibility for all demographics, he said.


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Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal in action in the Spanish Super Cup semi-final against Athletic Bilbao in Jeddah on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters

A test event was held at the new Kai Tak Stadium last weekend. Photo: Sam Tsang

Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski (left) celebrates scoring against Real Madrid in October. Photo: EPA-EFE

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Mohamed Salah’s Liverpool have been earmarked for a summer visit to Hong Kong, reports say. Photo: Xinhua

Kai Tak Stadium is set to welcome some of Europe’s biggest clubs, such as Son Heung-min’s Tottenham. Photo: AFP

Hong Kong welcomes public into new sporting home as Kai Tak Stadium opens doors

The university rugby sevens competition takes place at the new Kai Tak Stadium on Sunday. Photo: Sam Tsang

Several thousand spectators take their places in the 50,000-seat venue on Sunday. Photo: Sam Tsang

The new South Stand (far end) contains a huge window on to the city’s harbour. Photo: Sam Tsang

Sport

Hong Kong

Football

Organiser disputes Kai Tak Sports Park’s version of events after reports that application form was not returned


Organiser disputes Kai Tak Sports Park’s version of events after reports that application form was not returned.


Spanish La Liga

FC Barcelona ‘signed’ to play in Hong Kong – but ‘unsent email’ row pauses venue talks

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Organiser disputes Kai Tak Sports Park’s version of events after reports that application form was not returned

Organiser disputes Kai Tak Sports Park’s version of events after reports that application form was not returned