England soccer legend David Beckham has caused serious uproar online after he posted on social media profiles on Instagram and Facebook about a visit to Hong Kong.

The former Real Madrid midfielder claimed to have enjoyed “great 48 hours in China,” despite the nation being part of China.

The fact is still a part of the Far East country though they have some form of autonomy. The player was dragged from his knowledge of the political economy and history, while some spoke in his defense.

Beckham had to respond by updating his post to read: “Great 48 hours in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

Some commenters on the player’s post argued that Hong Kong and Taiwan were parts of China, asking the residents there to accept their fate and not “even think about independence.”

Instagram is blocked in Mainland China but the responses – using simplified characters – on the posts were written by people who likely lived in Mainland China as Hong Kong employed traditional Chinese script.

Some other commenters argued that “HONG KONG IS NOT CHINA,” even adding banners where people where advocating for an independent nation. They thanked the player for making the changes from “China” to “Shanghai and Hong Kong.”

This controversy is similar somewhat to what Beckham’s wife Victoria faced last year. The former model turned business woman launched an overseas hop in Hong Kong but used simplified characters as against traditional script employed in the country, Macao and Taiwan.