Image Courtesy: Instagram
Kolkata: The India tour of Argentina's World Cup-winning captain and football's biggest superstar, Lionel Messi, has finally started, but on the very first day this tour has written a story full of ups and downs. The enthusiasm of the fans was at its peak to welcome Messi, who arrived in India on the morning of Saturday, 13 December. The craze to see Messi coming to India after 14 years was so much that the first program of the day got marred by chaos in Kolkata.
Thousands of fans had gathered at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata to get a glimpse of Messi. But poor arrangements of the event spoiled the atmosphere. Messi could stay at the venue for only 10-15 minutes, and due to security reasons, he had to leave the stadium midway. Fans could neither see their hero properly nor feel any connection with him. Disappointment soon turned to anger, and incidents of vandalism were reported in the stadium, following which the event had to be stopped.
After the Kolkata incident, there was tremendous pressure on the organizers regarding Messi's Hyderabad event. Questions were being raised about whether the situation would go out of control there too. But by evening the picture completely changed. The event held at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium was completed in a peaceful and orderly manner, which brought a sigh of relief at the end of the day.
VIDEO | Hyderabad: Argentine football icon Lionel Messi entertains fans at Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, playfully kicking the ball to the crowd gathered in the stadium.
โ Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 13, 2025
(Source: Third Party)#MessiInIndia #Hyderabad pic.twitter.com/AE5kd5YWhw
In Hyderabad, Messi greeted the fans by shaking hands, and after coming on the field, he delivered a football to the audience with a powerful shot. The stadium echoed with applause and slogans. A small friendly football session also took place during the program, in which Messi took part. Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy was also present on this occasion and played football with Messi for some time.
The presence of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in this program also attracted attention. Rahul Gandhi posed for a picture with Messi, and there was a conversation between the two for some time. Messi presented his famous number-10 Argentina jersey to Rahul Gandhi, which became a special moment of the program.
๐๐ข๐จ๐ง๐๐ฅ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ข ๐ค ๐๐๐ก๐ฎ๐ฅ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ก๐ข
โ Congress (@INCIndia) December 13, 2025
๐๐ฐ๐จ ๐๐๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐ ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ก๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐ฎ๐ซ โค๏ธ โค๏ธ ๐๐๐๐ญ pic.twitter.com/D9kw2NYlu6
In this India tour, Messi is also accompanied by his close friends Luis Suarez and Rodrigo de Paul. The program in Hyderabad, which lasted for about one and a quarter hours, ended without any problem. Fans got a glimpse of their hero, and Messi also got a chance to feel the love of the Indian audience. After the chaos of the first day, the tour ended with relief and smiles.
โจ๐๐ง ๐๐ง๐๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐๐๐ฅ๐ ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ โจ
โ Congress (@INCIndia) December 13, 2025
Football's Greatest Of All Time Lionel Messi in Hyderabad. pic.twitter.com/5z5gXCKbG9
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