Joy of 6: Bayern, Villa clash one of 3 matches set for feast of football in Hong Kong
Star strikers Harry Kane, Erling Haaland, Lautaro Martinez could all be heading to city in August, but only if their countries flop at World Cup
Bayern Munich and Aston Villa will bring the curtain down on a week of football in Hong Kong this summer, which will also feature English giants Manchester City and Chelsea, and Italian pair Inter Milan and Juventus.
In a statement on Friday, the Bundesliga and Premier League sides said they would clash at Kai Tak Stadium on August 7 in the Audi Football Summit.
And while not officially confirmed, sources have told the South China Morning Post that as part of the second Hong Kong Football Festival, Manchester City and Inter will play at the stadium on August 1, with Juventus and Chelsea meeting four days later.
All clubs are believed to have committed to bringing their stars, although who comes will depend on this summer’s World Cup. Players are guaranteed three weeks off at the end of their involvement in the tournament in Canada, Mexico and the United States; and with the semi-finals set for July 14 and 15, a run to the last four would rule some out.
England and Germany fans will be hoping that means not seeing the likes of Bayern pair Harry Kane and Serge Gnabry, but the German club has vowed the best players available will be part of the squad for a pre-season tour that also includes a game against South Korea’s Jeju United on August 4.
“Knowing that we have a lot of players from the German, French and English national teams, as well as Korea and Japan, for sure some of these players will reach the later stages,” Rouven Kasper, Bayern’s chief marketing officer, told the SCMP. “Who will play here or not would be in the hands of their national teams.”