Korean Fans Suing Due To ‘Mental Anguish’ After Cristiano Ronaldo Fails To Play In Friendly

While it had been expected that Cristiano Ronaldo would take part in the fixture, the local fans were fuming when he was left on the bench for the entire 90 minutes

Balls.ie | Gary Connaughton 

Listen to this article

 

Pre-season tours are lucrative ventures for clubs. They may be taxing on players and managers, but they bring in massive amounts of money.

They also offer the opportunity for supporters from all corners of the globe to see their favorite players up close. For supporters of major European clubs that can't make it to games, this is a huge occasion.

Of course, there can also be a massive disappointment if the star players don't feature in the friendlies. That was the case during Juventus' recent meeting with a K League All-Star side in South Korea.

While it had been expected that Cristiano Ronaldo would take part in the fixture, the local fans were fuming when he was left on the bench for the entire 90 minutes. Chants for his arch-nemesis Lionel Messi even began to ring out throughout the stadium.

It appears they will now take further action, seeking monetary compensation for the player's absence. According to the BBC, many who were at the game have contacted reached out to Seoul law firm Myungan to file a lawsuit.

They are seeking a full refund of the 71,000 Korean Won (€54) they paid for the match ticket, as well as a staggering 1million Won (€760) for the 'mental anguish' they suffered as a result of Ronaldo's absence.

Also read: Soccer: 10 injured of this pre-season 

A lawyer from the firm explained the reasoning behind the lawsuit to Reuters:

"Normally in such cases, the plaintiffs will be refunded the price of the tickets, but I put this under a special case since the company, through false advertising, took advantage of the football star's fans. As for the mental anguish part, I'd like to say some of them are raucous fans, the real avid fans. So for them, it is very painful because they love Ronaldo and want to protect him, but they can't, given the situation."

Ronaldo was actually contracted to play at least 45 minutes in the match, meaning their request of a ticket refund could be considered. The mental anguish aspect is a different matter.

Apparently, Juve Vice President, Pavel Nedved, told a match organizer that Ronaldo 'did not want to' play in the game, and they were unable to force him to do so.