HONG KONG — Veteran actor Felix Wong has apologised for his unfriendly behaviour in a recent friendly football match.

Wong, 62, was one of the players of the Hong Kong All Stars Sports Association. The match was against Rongjiang Village League from China's Guizhou province, at the United Football Invitational Tournament 2023 held at Hong Kong Stadium last Saturday (Nov 11).

In videos which went viral after the match, he was seen using his left foot to kick an opposing player in the back after the actor fell while tussling for the ball with the player.

Wong was shown a yellow card by the referee for the foul, as he walked towards his opponent while glaring fiercely. The referee and the other players stepped in to separate the two as actor Alan Tam, also on the Hong Kong celebrity team, calmed Wong down.

Several Chinese netizens criticised Wong for kicking the player's back, saying that it reflected badly on him. Others took issue with his other actions on the pitch, such as fouling another player and pushing away a player roughly.

Wong, who is known for roles in TVB series such as Legend Of The Condor Heroes (1983) and Looking Back In Anger (1989), has apologised in a video posted on Hong Kong All Stars Sports Association's Chinese social media platforms Douyin and Weibo on Tuesday.

"The whole event was originally perfect, but it was ruined by irrational behaviour on my part, which made me a little regretful," Wong said in Mandarin. "I have read all the criticisms made by netizens, which I accept."

He continued: "On self-reflection, I feel that I really haven't done a good job in controlling my emotions, and there is lots of room for improvement. I want to apologise to all the players of the Village Super League, friends from Guizhou, fans across the country and all netizens."

Bowing in the video, he said: "I'm sorry. I was wrong."

Tam, 73, shared the video to his Weibo account on Tuesday, praising Wong for taking responsibility and being willing to admit to his mistakes.

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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.