Argentina superstar Lionel Messi, in all probability, will tour India for a friendly game in November 2025. Argentina Football Association (AFA) confirmed in an official statement on Saturday (August 23). The opponents of Argentina in India are yet to be determined.
Lionel Messi’s Argentina is set to tour India later this year in November. They will be arriving in Kerala for a friendly match, the Argentina Football Association (AFA) confirmed on Saturday (August 23). However, their opponents in India are yet to be confirmed. It is not clear yet if Messi will travel with the squad for the clash; however, there will be a huge anticipation of his visit.
Along with Kerala in India, Albicelesteย will also travel to Luanda in Angola for the FIFA friendly in November. “The Argentine national team, led by Lionel Scaloni, will have two FIFA friendlies in the remainder of 2025.ย The first, in October, from the 6th to the 14th, will be played in the United States (opponents and cities to be determined). The second, a FIFA friendlies in November, from the 10th to the 18th, will be played in Luanda, Angola, and Kerala, India (opponents to be determined),” the official statement from AFA read.
Argentina’s trip in gratitude for World Cup support in 2022
Argentina’s tour to Kerala is in gratitude for the support the team got during their triumph in the FIFA World Cup in 2022. Argentina had specifically thanked Kerala along with India, Pakistan and Bangladesh for their support after they won the FIFA World Cup under Messi. “Thank you Bangladesh. Thank you Kerala, India, Pakistan. Your support was wonderful!โ the AFA post read in December 2022.
In November last year,ย Kerala Sports Minister V. Abdurahiman announced Argentina’s decision to tour Kerala as an appreciative gesture for the same. “The love and support from Keralaโs football fans have been remarkable, and the Argentine team is eager to connect with them,” he wrote in his Facebook post.
However, there was a lot of back and forth in discussions with even theย AFAโs Chief Commercial and Marketing Officer, Leandro Petersen, accusing the Kerala government of breaching the agreement of the proposed visit only a fortnight ago. However, his remarks were dismissed byย Abdurahiman.
Will Messi board the flight in November?
It is yet not clear if Lionel Messi will take the long flight to India where his fan following is massive. The date of the friendly clash is yet to be confirmed but the match will be playedย at the Greenfield Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram as per media reports.
As for Messi, he is reportedly set to visit India in a stand-alone trip in December 2025. It will be a four-city tour of the superstar as he will be in Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Mumbai and New Delhi.
Also Read