Lionel Messi’s visit to India turned sour after furious fans stormed the pitch and resorted to vandalism at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata.
Angry fans who had splashed out on expensive tickets to see the Argentina legend in the flesh began hurling bottles and attempting to break the gates between the stands, allegedly protesting the mismanagement of the event after Messi left early.
The Inter Miami star arrived at the stadium at 11.15am local time, but only stayed for approximately half an hour before being rushed away, unable to complete a full lap of the stadium due to the chaos.
There were around 80,000 paying fans inside the 85,000-capacity venue, according to locals reports, some of whom had paid up to £90 to see the World Cup winner.
Tensions began to flare as were unable to catch a glimpse of the Argentinian as he was mobbed by hundreds of ‘VIPs’ including local media, politicians and influencers.
‘Only leaders and actors were surrounding Messi,’ a fan told ANI news agency. Why did they call us then? … We have got a ticket for 12,000 rupees ($130), but we were not even able to see his face.’
Astonishing footage shared to social media on Saturday morning showed huge crowds of supporters launching bottles and damaging the fibreglass seats, which forced the police to intervene as they struggled to deal with crowd control.
As soon as Messi touched down in Kolkata, he was given a hero’s welcome by huge crowds of jubilant supporters who lined the city streets to welcome him. He was hurriedly forced out of the airport via an alternative route.
Messi was visiting India for the first time since 2011, and this time the former capital city built a remarkable 70ft statue of the icon to mark his visit.
He is there as part of a tour during which he is scheduled to attend concerts, youth football clinics, a padel tournament and launch charitable initiatives at events in Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai and New Delhi.
The winger will also unveil as huge remarkable 70-foot tall statue of himself in Kolkata.
The chief minister of West Bengal state, Mamata Banerjee, 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,’ Banerjee, who was on her way to the event when chaos broke out, posted on X.
‘I sincerely apologise to Lionel Messi, as well as to all sports lovers and his fans, for the unfortunate incident,’ she said.
‘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.’
West Bengal, Kerala and Goa states have long had large soccer followings in otherwise cricket-crazed India.
Argentine soccer great Diego Maradona twice visited Kolkata and in 2017 unveiled a statue of himself holding the World Cup, in the presence of thousands of fans.
