Festive enthusiasm in Bengal arrived early in 2025 with the audacious announcement of the arrival of the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner, Lionel Andreas Messi, by Mr. Satadru Dutta, popularly referred to as a 'sports entrepreneur'.
The 2022 World Cup winner kicked off the much-anticipated G.O.A.T Tour in India as he arrived in Kolkata on 13.12.2025 at the wee hours. The tour spans over 4 cities of the country, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi. Kolkata has a rich tradition of hosting legendary footballing icons, from the heydays of Pelé to the post-playing days of Diego Armando Maradona.
As a diehard fan of Leo Messi myself, I got hold of a pass of the grand event after much permutation-combinations with my limited savings, as the pass seemed to cost me a fortune, but what use of that fortune, which would not be fortunate enough to have a glimpse of perhaps the greatest footballer of all time!
I set off for the stadium from my hometown after an anxious sleepless night; sleepless since I was unsure if I would be able to get up by 5 AM in the chilly cold. I boarded a local train at 6.30 AM in the morning hoping to get the best view from my stand after almost spending a fortune. The local train set the buzz as I encountered a few more Messi crazyheads in the train who were all decked in the white & blue jersey to welcome their God!
The local train journey followed a Metro Train ride to the Salt Lake stadium, where the entire compartment had already started chanting 'MESSI MESSI MESSI MESSI'.
I had never witnessed a collective adrenaline rush of almost a lakh football fans at one go, exalted at the actualisation of their lifelong dream. The stadium was already jam-packed by the time we hit the ground. However, in a matter of a few hours, the unadulterated delight turned into a demonic despair. We were ecstatic to spot the car from which Messi, Suarez, & De Paul stepped out, but in a few minutes Messi was lost amidst a crowd of almost 300 who were grabbing the stars for selfies and autographs.
We were left astonished when the trio left in 22 minutes, and the event was over before the scheduled 1.5 hrs. A lot of people around me who mentioned that they arrived all the way from the Northeast almost broke down, as none of us could spot our dream star amidst the loathed crowd of politicians and celebrities who were shamefully stopping the star from freely meeting the crowd. In a few minutes, hell broke loose in the stadium, and the rest is history. The Sports Minister, Mr. Aroop Biswas, should be sacked right away if Trinamool wants to maintain some credibility as the 2026 Assembly Elections approach with a huge anti-incumbency looming all over!
- Mr. Dwaipayan Choudhury,
Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science,
University of Science & Technology Meghalaya.
