Messi’s tour of India begins with fans throwing bottles, stadium vandalised

Lionel Messi’s much-hyped tour of India got off to a rocky start on Saturday with angry fans throwing bottles and attempting to vandalise a stadium after many of them failed to get more than just a glimpse of their hero.

The Times of India reported that many ticket holders said they failed to see Messi at all – either in person or on the stadium’s big screens – despite waiting for hours.

Fans threw objects, ripped up seats and invaded the pitch after Messi’s scheduled 45-minute visit lasted just 20 minutes. Tickets for the event were priced from about 3,500 rupees ($38.65) – more than half of the average weekly income in India – but one fan said he had paid $130.

Satadru Dutta, the event’s chief organiser, has been arrested, said Rajeev Kumar, director general of West Bengal police.

“We’ve already detained the main organiser,” Rajeev Kumar told reporters. “We’re taking action so that this mismanagement does not go unpunished.

“He has already pledged in writing that tickets sold for the event should be refunded,” he added.

The organisers of the tour did not immediately respond to a request for a comment.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee apologised to the Argentinian football star for the “mismanagement” of the event.

“I am deeply disturbed and shocked by the mismanagement witnessed today at Salt Lake Stadium,” Banerjee wrote on social media, where she also apologised to fans who had expected more after paying for tickets.

Banerjee said a committee would be constituted to “conduct a detailed enquiry into the incident, fix responsibility, and recommend measures to prevent such occurrences in the future”.

Messi’s three-day “GOAT (Greatest of All Time) India Tour” was to bring the World Cup winner from Kolkata to Hyderabad and then Mumbai before concluding in New Delhi on Monday.

He was joined by longtime teammates Luis Suarez and Rodrigo De Paul.

Earlier on Saturday, Messi remotely “unveiled” a 21-metre (70ft) statue of himself in Kolkata.

Former FIFA President Sepp Blatter once described India as a “sleeping giant” in the football arena, but the sport in the country has run into many problems in recent years.

The Indian Super League (ISL) – India’s top football competition – has been in danger of collapse over a dispute between the federation and its commercial partner.

ISL side Bengaluru FC stopped paying the salaries of its first team’s players and staff as a result of the turmoil.

In a statement in August, the 2018-19 ISL champions said they had taken the decision “in view of the uncertainty surrounding the future of the Indian Super League season”.

Messi and his Argentina teammates will be defending their FIFA World Cup crown at the 2026 edition, which will be staged in the United States, Canada and Mexico next summer.