Messi’s much-hyped visit to the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan, his first appearance at the venue since 2011, turned into a disorderly affair marked by crowd trespassing, vandalism and frantic police intervention, casting a shadow on an event billed as a celebration of one of football’s biggest global stars.
Video credit: BusinesslineThe police had to disperse the crowd on the field with batons.
The World Cup-winning captain arrived at the stadium around 11.30am, accompanied by long-time striker Luis Suárez and Argentina teammate Rodrigo De Paul.
His vehicle was parked near the sidelines and as soon as he entered the field, he was swarmed by a group of VIPs, organizers, celebrities and security personnel, leaving ordinary spectators in the galleries eager for a closer look.
Messi walked a short distance across the pitch and waved briefly to the stands as chants of “Messi, Messi” echoed through the stadium.
However, fans soon realized that the footballer was tightly shielded by security and invited guests, making him barely visible from large parts of the galleries. Many complained that even the giant screens did not provide a clear view.
Frustration quickly increased. Chants of “We want Messi” grew louder as it became clear the Argentina star would not complete the full lap of the stadium that was part of the original programme.
Instead, Messi returned halfway through and was escorted out well before the scheduled end of his performance.
When word spread that Messi had left the field prematurely, anger flowed.
Bottles flew from the galleries onto the field, followed by plastic chairs. Sponsor banners and billboards were torn down, fiberglass seats destroyed and parts of the crowd tried to tear open barricades to force their way onto the field.
Amid the growing unrest, sections of the crowd shouted slogans demanding the arrest of State Sports Minister Aroop Biswas and event organizer Shatadru Datta, holding them responsible for what they alleged was gross mismanagement of the high-profile event, eyewitnesses said.
They also said the situation worsened when organizers, including promoter Shatadru Datta and his team, were no longer visible on the ground shortly after Messi’s departure.
Repeated announcements over the public address system asking unauthorized persons to leave the field went largely unheeded, even as angry fans continued to shout slogans against organizers and the state sports department.
Within minutes, hundreds of spectators poured onto the field, tearing down temporary tents and damaging equipment near the boundary line.
Police personnel found it difficult to control the swelling crowd, prompting the deployment of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) at the stadium.
“This was complete mismanagement,” said Ajay Shah, a disgruntled fan who came with his son.
“People spent a month’s salary to see Messi. I paid ₹5,000 for a ticket. We came to watch Messi, not politicians. There was no drinking water and even the police were busy taking selfies,” he said.
Ticket prices for the event ranged between ₹4,500 and ₹10,000, with many fans arriving early in the morning hoping to see the football legend up close.
The chaos also forced an abrupt curtailment of the programme, with several invited dignitaries, including Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan, former Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, unable to participate as planned.
Police sources said the situation did not spiral out of control just because Messi was removed from the stadium ahead of schedule and additional security forces rushed in.
For a city that prides itself on its deep football culture, the scenes of broken seats, torn banners and angry fans told a grim story.
What was billed as a red-letter day for the “City of Joy” ultimately ended up as a cautionary tale, with less Messi and more chaos in one of India’s biggest football arenas.
Published on December 13, 2025
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