Inter Miami, led by Lionel Messi, stated on Wednesday that their two games scheduled for China this month had been canceled.
According to an online statement, Inter Miami stated that the tour’s promoter had notified the club of the cancelation and that it was “due to unforeseen circumstances in China”.
The tour organiser confirmed the news in a post on Chinese social media site Weibo, saying that it “deeply regretted” the announcement but without providing a reason for the decision.
The team had originally been scheduled to play two Chinese Super League teams in friendly matches, first facing Qingdao Hainiu on Sunday and then Chengdu Rongcheng three days later.
Recent World Cup champion Messi is wildly popular in China, where the men’s national team has performed poorly in recent years and the domestic league wrestles with corruption.
In June, Messi and the Argentinians’ iconic blue-and-white-striped shirts thrilled thousands of supporters when they defeated Australia 2-0 in an international friendly.
The 36-year-old football star increased his lead over Cristiano Ronaldo, who now holds the record with five Ballon d’Or trophies, by receiving his eighth trophy in Paris on Monday.
After Messi joined Miami in July, the team’s social media following grew significantly throughout the world, and in August, the squad won its first trophy—a Leagues Cup—on the playing field.
