Messi appearance in India descends into chaos as chairs thrown and organiser arrested

Martin Macdonald

• Updated: 13 Dec 2025 04:57 CST
• 4 min read

Nieuws

Lionel Messi had to cut short a promotional appearance in India after unrest erupted in the stands at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata.

The World Cup winner is currently doing a promotional tour in India less than a week after winning the MLS Cup with Inter Miami.

As part of the tour, he will attend youth football training and matches, a padel tournament, concerts and launch philanthropic initiatives at events in Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi.

His first appearance was at the Salt Late Stadium where he walked around the pitch waving to fans. However, as he was guarded by heavy security and surrounded by another large group, fans in the stands apparently didn't get a great look at the Argentine.

#WATCH | Kolkata, West Bengal: Angry fans resort to vandalism at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, alleging poor management of the event.

Star footballer Lionel Messi has left the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata.

A fan of star footballer Lionel Messi said, "Absolutely terrible… pic.twitter.com/TOf2KYeFt9

— ANI (@ANI) December 13, 2025

After he stayed for just 20 minutes, the frustration turned to chaos as those fans started to rip up stadium seats and throw them onto the pitch.

"It was really disappointing, we came from Darjeeling for that... We couldn't even see it properly, and it's the most disappointing thing I've ever seen," a fan told ANI News.

Mamata Banerjee, the chief minister of West Bengal state, apologised to Messi and ordered a probe into the incident. “I am deeply disturbed and shocked by the mismanagement witnessed today at Salt Lake Stadium," she wrote on X.

“I sincerely apologise to Lionel Messi, as well as to all sports lovers and his fans, for the unfortunate incident. I am constituting an enquiry committee … the committee will conduct a detailed enquiry into the incident, fix responsibility, and recommend measures to prevent such occurrences in the future.”

Kolkata has a large football following and seems to have an affinity with Argentina was Diego Maradona visited the city twice and has a statue of himself there. This week, Messi was also honoured with a statue, which he unveiled virtually.

Following the event, another disgruntled fan told ANI News:

"We are very disappointed. My child was very eager to see Messi. I think it's a scam. When Messi arrived, everyone surrounded him. Only leaders and actors surrounded Messi. Why did they call us at that time? We had a 12,000 [£100] rupee ticket, but we couldn't even see it. An absolutely deplorable event. He stayed barely ten minutes.

"All the leaders and ministers surrounded him. We didn't see anything. He didn't shoot a single kick, not a single penalty. He stayed ten minutes and left. What a waste of money, emotions and time! We didn't see anything!"

The organiser of the event, Shatadru Dutt, has now been arrested, India Today reports.

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