Lionel Messi India Tour: Argentina football great Lionel Messi is all set to embark on a nation-wide tour in India starting on December 13. This will be Messi’s second visit to India, with the previous one being for a friendly match in which he captained Argentina for the first time in his career against Venezuela in Kolkata in September 2011. He won’t be playing any official games this time but will be visiting four cities in four parts of the country over the course of a whirlwind three days in an event that has been named ‘GOAT Tour of India 2025’.
It is learnt that the schedule for the tour remains flexible but this is how things stand thus far. All tickets are available on District, the official ticketing partner for the tour.
Kolkata – December 13
The tour starts in Kolkata, where Messi will land at 1.30am on December 13, accompanied by Inter Miami teammates Luis Suarez and Rodrigo de Paul. Between 9.30am and 10.30am the Argentine superstar will take part in a meet and greet event where people will have a chance to meet him up close, shake his hand and have a special group photo taken with him. For this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, fans will have to fork out Rs 10 lakhs.
The event at the Salt Lake Stadium is set to start at 10am and end by 1.05pm
There will be a musical concert celebrating the Argentine superstar and a 7 vs 7 football match taking place whereMohun Bagan ‘Messi’ All Stars will take on Diamond Harbour ‘Messi’ All Stars. Messi and Co will also be attending a masterclass with scouted children and is expected to meet Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, among others.
Messi will leave the city at around 2 pm.
Hyderabad – December 13
The meet and greet opportunity in Hyderabad will be at the Falaknuma Palace and, as is the case in Kolkata and in every city that comes later, fans will have to cough up an entry fee of Rs 10,00,000.
The Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium at Uppal is the venue for the stadium event in Hyderabad. It starts at 7pm and will go on for three hours. The stadium event will feature a 20-minute exhibition match between Singareni RR-9 and Aparna Messi All Stars. Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy is also expected to join the match towards the end.
Mumbai – December 14
The second day of the tour is will be in Mumbai where Messi’s meet and greet event will be at the Cricket Club of India’s (CCI) Brabourne Stadium. There will be a fashion show for charity and a padel match with cricket stars which has been dubbed as the Padel Cup. There will be a coaching clinic for 60 young players under Project Mahadeva at the at the GOAT Football Clinic. This will be followed by the stadium event at the Wankhede Stadium.
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Indian football icon Sunil Chhetri is expected to meet Messi. Among other star names set to feature in the Mumbai leg are cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, John Abraham, Kareena Kapoor Khan and Jackie Shroff.
Delhi – December 15
The final leg of Messi’s tour will be at the national capital on December 15. Messi is scheduled to first attend a meet and greet at the Leela Palace around 12pm, for which the entry fee is listed at an eye watering Rs 10 lakh on District, the official ticketing platform for the tour..
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