A warning from the Hong Kong Football Association (HKFA) failed to stop the city's football fans from booing again when the national anthem was played on Tuesday during a home game against Chinese mainland, while experts said footbal games should not be politicized.
The soccer match was held on Tuesday evening at Mong Kok Stadium and ended with a 0-0 draw, crushing the hope for the mainland team to be qualified for the 2016 World Cup.
The match also drew 0-0 under heavy security in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province in September.
The crowd observed a moment of silence for the victims of the Paris attacks before the match started. But when the national anthem was played, many Hong Kong fans started booing with some holding placards with the word "Boo" written on them, reported Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK).
Local media reports said the stadium was under heavy security, with about 1,200 police officers deployed for the match, or about one for every five people at the 6,000-seat stadium. The crowd was also made to enter the stadium through different gates, and was assigned separate bathrooms and food kiosks in two different areas to avoid conflicts.
Local government officials and the HKFA warned local fans to behave themselves before the match and not to boo or heckle when the national anthem is played, RTHK reported.
The warning came after Hong Kong football fans booed the national anthem during a match against Qatar in September, for which the HKFA was fined more than $5,000.
The HKFA also received a letter from the International Football Federation (FIFA) on July 3, which warned that "spectators shall respect at all times the principles of fair play."
The behavior of Hong Kong football fans drew much attention in September, and led to a backlash from online users from the Chinese mainland, who called Hong Kong fans "unpatriotic," while the HKFA expressed disappointment over the behavior.
Zhang Dinghuai, a professor at the Contemporary Chinese Politics Research Institute of Shenzhen University, told the Global Times on Tuesday that booing the national anthem is disrespectful to their country and the "one country, two systems" policy, which should be punished.
He added that those acts prove Hong Kong people lack national education.
"Football is supposed to be an entertaining game and should not be politicized," he said. "If Hong Kong society continues such politicization, it would harm the city's future development and will spark broad discontent."
In the must-win match, the Chinese mainland team missed four attempts at the goal. Hong Kong also failed to score, with forward Jaimes McKee's header bouncing off the crossbar in the first half.
In the 76th minute, mainland forward Yu Dabao's shot sailed well past the goal line but was swatted away by Hong Kong goalkeeper Yapp Hung Fai, but the referee nullified the goal. The mainland team missed their last chance to score when substitute striker Bi Jinhao's header hit the bar in stoppage time.
