The HKFA was fined more than $5,000 after fans booed the anthem during a match against Qatar in September.
Advertisement
Hong Kong, which was a British colony until 1997, retains a high degree of autonomy from China but is still subject to certain rulings from Beijing.
Hong Kong fans jeered and turned their backs during the “March of the Volunteers” anthem, which the semi-autonomous territory shares with China.
The joint 2018 World Cup and 2019 Asian Cup qualifier follows last year’s “Umbrella Movement” pro-democracy protests, which gripped the city and underlined discontent with Beijing’s rule.
Hong Kong was once the factory of the world – making everything from electronics to toys.
Under FIFA’s disciplinary code, teams are responsible for maintaining the proper behavior of their fans during matches. Hong Kong, a former British colony, is a special administrative region of China. Examples of conduct considered improper include “displaying insulting or political slogans in any form” and “uttering insulting words or sounds”.
“The HKFA will be submitting a response to Federation Internationale de Football Association stating that the booing was carried out by a small section of the crowd and pointing out the mitigating actions taken by the HKFA prior to the match to… avoid this situation”, Sutcliffe said.
The HKFA said Federation Internationale de Football Association has requested that the organization provide a statement and any supporting evidence that it may consider relevant to the present case by December 1. Group Ltd.is among bidders for a Swire Properties Ltd. commercial building in Kowloon Bay that may fetch HK$8 billion ($1 billion), Hong Kong Economic Times reported Wednesday, citing unidentified people.
Advertisement
Millionaires, or high net worth individuals, will increase 18.3 percent in Singapore over the period compared to 15.6 percent in Hong Kong, a WealthInsight report showed.
