Messi’s Visit to Kerala for Friendly Match Called Off
Dubela, Ankesh Roy (Edited By Chhoyee Ghosh): The 2022 World Cup-winning team Argentina was supposed to play a match in Kerala, India, but the event has been called off due to financial troubles. According to a report by the New Indian Express, the organizers could not raise the ₹100 crore needed to hold the matches.
Kerala’s Sports Minister, V. Abdurahiman, had announced last November the plan to bring Lionel Messi and his team to play two friendly matches in Kerala, with one match to be held in Kochi. Out of the total ₹100 crore required to organize the matches, ₹70 crore was just for bringing the Argentina team to India. Reports say the deadline to confirm the deal has passed, and the organizers failed to arrange the funds in time.
Argentina sports journalist Gastón Edul announced that Argentina’s national football team will play two friendly matches in China and one match each in Angola and Qatar. Although the schedule hasn’t been officially confirmed, the Argentina team is already booked for October and November during FIFA friendly windows.
Initially, a group within the All Kerala Gold and Silver Merchants Association (AKGSMA) was granted the sponsorship. They tried to raise ₹100 crore through sales on their ‘Oloppo’ app, with ₹70 crore allocated for the team’s appearance fee. However, when the plan started failing, the state government decided to transfer the sponsorship to Reporter Broadcasting Company Pvt Ltd, which owns the Reporter TV news channel.
Earlier in March 2025, a statement by HSBC India about the Argentina team’s arrival in India in October 2025 had raised huge hopes among Lionel Messi’s fans. However, there was no mention of any financial issues at that time.
