Malaysia pulls out of HK soccer friendly

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia have pulled out of a football friendly in Hong Kong over concerns about the unprecedented pro-democracy protests in the city, officials said Thursday, the latest sporting casualty from the unrest. Hong Kong has been rocked by increasingly violent demonstrations over the past three months, with protesters calling for democracy and complaining that freedoms in the semi-autonomous city have been eroded under Beijing’s rule.

The friendly was scheduled for October 15 but the Football Association of Malaysia said they had written to their counterparts in Hong Kong on Wednesday informing them it would be postponed.