New Delhi: Lionel Messi’s most-awaited India tour has received its final approval, with the Argentine footballer set to begin his three-city tour in Kolkata on December 12, said promoter of the event Satadru Dutta on Friday.
According to earlier PTI reports, Kolkata will be the first destination in Messi’s trip named ‘GOAT Tour of India 2025’, followed by Ahmedabad, Mumbai and New Delhi. He will also meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi at this residence at the end of the tour.
This will be Messi’s first tour to India since 2011, when he visited the country with his national team to play a FIFA friendly match against Venezuela at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata.
Dutta told PTI that he got the authorisation and made it official after that, and Messi will post on social media any day between August 28 and September 1 with the official poster with all details and a small introduction of his tour. He met with Messi’s father earlier this year to present the proposal, and the star footballer himself met him at his residence for a 45-minute discussion.
His Inter Miami teammates Rodrigo De Paul, Luis Suarez, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets might join him for the tour, but Dutta refused to reveal any names. Messi’s tour will feature a special masterclass with children in each city, which is aimed at inspiring the next generation of Indian footballers.
He will arrive in Kolkata on the night of December 12 and will spend two days and one night in his longest stop on the tour. On December 13, he will do a meet-and-greet in the morning, which will feature a special food and tea festival.
“He’s a lover of mate (Argentine herbal tea), so I am doing a fusion of Argentine and Indian Assam tea. This will be an extra addition, to be held on the sidelines of the meet-and-greet event on December 13 morning at his hotel (Taj Bengal). All Bengali fish, including hilsa, and sweet delicacies will be there on the platter for the food festival,” Dutta revealed.
The Argentine footballer will unveil his statue, followed by the ‘GOAT Concert’ and ‘GOAT Cup’ at either Eden Gardens or Salt Lake Stadium.
“Not only will he unveil his biggest-ever statue, we will have a huge mural (dimensions of 25 feet height and 20 feet width) for him, which will be kept at strategic Durga Puja pandal-hopping locations so that all his fans will have an opportunity to paint and post messages in a nearby message box. That mural will be presented to Messi when he’s inside the stadium for the GOAT Concert,” Dutta said as quoted by PTI.
The GOAT Cup at the iconic Eden Gardens will be a celebratory seven-a-side soft-touch football match, with Messi playing alongside Sourav Ganguly, Leander Paes, John Abraham and Bhaichung Bhutia. The event organisers are expecting a sell-out crowd, with tickets likely to start from Rs 3,500. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is expected to felicitate Messi during the programme.
Messi likely to meet PM Modi, Dhoni, Kohli and Gill
Messi will travel to Ahmedabad on the evening of December 13 for a private event hosted by the Adani Foundation. The Mumbai leg of the tour will feature a meet-and-greet at CCI Brabourne Stadium, followed by the GOAT Concert and GOAT Cup at the Wankhede Stadium on December 14.
“Messi, being a great fan of the racket sport (typically played in an enclosed arena), will play padel along with celebrities at the CCI Brabourne, Mumbai,” Dutta said. According to the PTI report, Shah Rukh Khan and Leander Paes are among those expected to play, with Messi possibly participating for five to 10 minutes.
The Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) is also planning a ‘GOAT moment’ pairing the star football with Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma, along with a Bollywood stars featuring Ranveer Singh, Aamir Khan and Tiger Shroff.
Messi will meet PM Modi at his residence in Delhi on December 15 before attending the GOAT Concert and GOAT Cup at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. Sources revealed to PTI that the Delhi District Cricket Association (DDCA) is also inviting Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill.
(With inputs from PTI)