1985 China v Hong Kong football match


China v Hong Kong was a 1986 [FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)|1986 FIFA World Cup qualification] match played on 19 May 1985, noteworthy in that the surprise result caused deep dissatisfaction and hooliganism among Mainland Chinese football fans, leading to the match being immortalised as the 19 May Incident or 5.19 incident.
Needing a victory to advance, Hong Kong achieved a stunning 2–1 win to eliminate heavily-favoured China, with goals from Cheung Chi Tak in the 19th minute and Ku Kam Fai in the 60th minute. Indian referee Melvyn D'Souza officiated the match, which was described by commentators at the time as being played in an unusually intense manner. After the loss, disgruntled home fans rioted in the Workers' Stadium and the People's Armed Police were needed to restore order. Due to the high stakes, the match was one of the most notable in the rivalry between the China and Hong Kong national football teams.

Background

China were the runners-up of the 1984 AFC Asian Cup and expected to be by far the strongest team in its 1986 [FIFA World Cup qualification] AFC Zone B first round group.
China and Hong Kong had met earlier in the tournament, playing out a scoreless draw in Hong Kong.
They entered the final match tied on points; however, China held the advantage in goal differential due to larger margins of victory over the group's other two teams, Brunei and Macau.
Thus, in order to advance to the next round, Hong Kong would need an unlikely away win in the Chinese capital.

Table before the match

After 12 May 1985, the group 4A table was as follows:
#Team
15410220+229
25410171+169
36204415−114
46006229−270

China qualifies for second round with win or draw.
''Hong Kong qualifies for second round with win only.''

Match

Summary

The Chinese team began the game on the offensive, determined to achieve a win rather than a draw. However, Hong Kong scored the first goal in the 19th minute, when during a free kick, Wu Kwok Hung backheeled the ball to Cheung Chi Tak, who shot and scored from well outside the penalty area.
China equalized twelve minutes later, when Li Hui scored off a rebound from Hong Kong's goalkeeper. In the second half, the Chinese players went on the attack again, and in doing so allowed more chances for Hong Kong to score. This culminated in Hong Kong's second goal, when Ku Kam Fai scored at the 60 minute mark. China took several shots over the game's final half-hour but we unable to score, resulting in a 2–1 victory for Hong Kong.

Aftermath

Result

#Team
1116510192+17
296411232+21
346204415−11
406006229−27

Hong Kong advances to Zone B Second Round.
In the AFC Zone B Second Round, Hong Kong faced another heavy favorite in a two-legged matchup with Japan. They quickly allowed two goals in the first leg in Japan, eventually falling 3–0.
They performed better in the second leg at home, but missed a penalty and lost 2–1. Japan advanced to the Zone B Final Round, 5–1 on aggregate score.
For China, the result represented another frustrating setback in their quest to qualify for their first World Cup finals.
In the qualifying tournament for the 1982 edition, they had lost to New Zealand by the same score in a winner-take-all match to qualify for the World Cup Finals. It would not be until 2002 that China would finally qualify for their first FIFA World Cup.

Hooliganism incident

This match also led to "the first incident of football hooliganism in the history of the People's Republic of China".
While Hong Kong's team received a hero's welcome upon their return, disgruntled mainlanders rioted in and around Workers' Stadium after the match. The People's Armed Police were called to restore order, leading to 127 arrests.
Zeng Xuelin, manager of the Chinese national team, and Li Fenglou, chairman of the Chinese Football Association, both resigned.