A shower of colorful confetti rained down on Lionel Messi as he ended his hectic four-city tour of India with a special appearance at New Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium on Monday, where a near-capacity crowd screamed themselves hoarse during his half-hour appearance.
The world’s most populous nation has temporarily set aside its cricket obsession and descended into “Messimania” since the Argentine eight-time Ballon d’Or winner arrived on Friday night, with thousands of fans waiting outside Kolkata airport.
Saturday’s event in Kolkata, however, descended into chaos, with angry fans tearing up seats and storming the pitch after local politicians hijacked the event. The main organizer was detained by the police.
The events in Hyderabad and Mumbai with Messi, 38, and his Inter Miami teammates Luis Suarez and Rodrigo de Paul went off without a hitch, and it was no different in New Delhi.
The trio walked around the pitch, occasionally kicking a ball into the packed stands, and played football with local children in a stadium that regularly hosts international cricket matches.
“It was a dream come true for us to see him live,” said Kaustav Ghosh, a Messi and Argentina fan who attended the event with his wife and two children.
“We traveled to Russia for the 2018 World Cup, but we couldn’t get tickets for any of Argentina’s games. At least we saw Messi here,” said Ghosh, whose entire family turned up wearing Argentina shirts.
Cricket, however, managed to infiltrate the event.
Messi, Suárez and De Paul received Indian cricket team shirts from ICC (International Cricket Council) president Jay Shah, along with tickets to next year’s World Cup in India and Sri Lanka.
The repercussions surrounding Messi’s visit contrast with the general climate of pessimism regarding Indian football.
The country occupies a modest 142nd position in the FIFA (International Football Federation) world rankings, and the Indian Super League is in limbo, as the AIFF (Indian Football Federation) was unable to find a new commercial partner after the end of the ten-year contract with the previous one.
