Calm End to Lionel Messi's Visit to India In the Wake of Disorder in Kolkata

Global football icon Lionel Messi has finished his three-day India tour in pollution-choked Delhi, in the wake of a chaotic opening in Kolkata.

On Monday, thousands of fans gathered in a Delhi stadium to catch a sight of the Argentina and Inter Miami forward.

As Messi, accompanied by Inter Miami teammates Luis Suárez and Rodrigo De Paul, entered the pitch – booting balls into the stands, playing with a group of children, and signing autographs – the crowd roared his name.

His plane from Mumbai had been postponed due to fog, local media stated, and his itinerary had to be cut down. On Saturday, frustrated fans vandalised a Kolkata stadium because they were unable to view him during his event there.

A Busy Schedule Spanning Multiple Cities

Messi had a packed schedule in India, taking part in a string of marketing events in Kolkata, Hyderabad, and Mumbai since arriving in the early hours of Saturday.

Before heading to Kolkata's Salt Lake Stadium later that day, he virtually presented a 21-meter statue of himself, built over 27 days by a large crew in the city in eastern India.

Chaotic Start in Football-Crazy Kolkata

The tour, however, started with a chaotic start after frustrated fans destroyed seats and hurled items towards the pitch at the stadium.

Football is immensely popular in West Bengal state – of which Kolkata is the capital – and thousands of devoted supporters had spent up to 12,000 rupees to witness the event.

However, many were unable to catch a glimpse of him as he was accompanied by officials and celebrities on his short walk around the stadium and then quickly whisked away as the situation turned hostile.

"Poor management of a much-publicized event, poor coordination" and security lapses turned the stadium into a "war zone", as fans – prevented from seeing of Messi – "released their frustration by engaging in violence."

The disturbance, which grabbed international headlines, overshadowed Messi's first visit to India since 2011 for what has been termed a 'GOAT [greatest of all time] tour'.

The promoter in Kolkata has been detained, police said, and a city court has remanded Satadru Dutta to 14 days in detention.

Successful Visits in Other Cities

Messi's visits to Hyderabad and Mumbai went off without a hitch, with fans expressing their joy at seeing the global icon online and in media interviews.

Messi also met several political figures and celebrities – film actor Shah Rukh Khan in Kolkata, opposition leader Rahul Gandhi in Hyderabad, and cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar in Mumbai.

In between these engagements, Messi could be seen waving to large fan gatherings in stadiums and juggling the ball with groups of children.

There were rumors earlier that Messi would have a meeting with Narendra Modi in Delhi, but the Indian prime minister left the country on Monday morning on a scheduled visit to Jordan, Ethiopia, and Oman.

The Root of His Vast Popularity in India

Messi's popularity comes not only from his long international career and extensive TV coverage of European football – he's the all-time top scorer for Barcelona – but also the deep bond that countless Indians have with what is often referred to as the beautiful game.