Kolkata Messi GOAT tour: Major chaos erupts as icon cuts short visit at venue

Chaos erupted at Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday as thousands of fans, many of whom had paid steep prices for tickets, watched their long-awaited chance to see Argentine football legend Lionel Messi dissolve into anger and disbelief. It ended in the irate crowd destroying government property at the venue worth crores while Kolkata Police detained Satadru Dutta, the main promoter of the event, at the airport when he was on his way to Hyderabad for the next leg of the event in the crowd.

Messi arrived at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan around 11.30 am, accompanied by longtime strike partner Luis Suárez and Argentina teammate Rodrigo De Paul. He was the first of the stars to step onto the turf, briefly circling the ground and waving to the crowd — a fleeting moment that ignited the stands.

But the magic was short-lived. The football icon remained hemmed in by a ring of VIPs, organisers and heavy security, effectively shutting out spectators in the galleries from any clear view. For many fans, even the stadium’s giant screens failed to offer a glimpse worth the wait.

As minutes stretched on, frustration spilled over. Chants of “We want Messi” rolled through the stands, growing louder with every passing moment. Tempers snapped when Messi was ushered out of the stadium within minutes — well before several invited dignitaries had even arrived. What followed was an eruption of disappointment. Angry supporters hurled bottles onto the field and tore down banners, hoardings and plastic chairs in the galleries.

The sequence of events has tarnished the reputation of the city being a sportsloving one, where Messi had played an international friendly between Argentina and Venezuela at the same venue in 2011. Apologising for the incident to the star on her X handle, state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said: ''I am deeply disturbed and shocked by the mismanagement witnessed today at Salt Lake Stadium...I sincerely apologise to Lionel Messi, as to all sports lovers and his fans, for the unfortunate incident.''

“We’ve been cheated — there’s no other word for it. The programme said Messi would be here for nearly two hours. The least they could have done was let him take a lap of the stadium. Is this really what we paid for?” said Shrestha Chakraborty, fighting back tears.

While the situation stopped short of complete mayhem — aided by Messi’s early exit and the deployment of additional security — the turmoil has cast a long shadow over the rest of the tour in Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi.