Smooth End to Lionel Messi's Visit to India In the Wake of Kolkata Chaos

Soccer legend Lionel Messi has finished his multi-day India tour in hazy Delhi, in the wake of a turbulent opening in Kolkata.

On Monday, a multitude of fans gathered in a Delhi stadium to get a glimpse of the Argentinian and Inter Miami forward.

As Messi, accompanied by Inter Miami colleagues Luis Suárez and Rodrigo De Paul, strolled on the pitch – booting balls into the stands, passing with a group of children, and signing autographs – the crowd chanted his name.

His plane from Mumbai had been postponed due to fog, reports stated, and his itinerary had to be cut down. On Saturday, frustrated fans wrecked a Kolkata stadium because they failed to see him during his appearance there.

A Busy Schedule Spanning Multiple Cities

Messi had a packed schedule in India, participating in a series of marketing events in Kolkata, Hyderabad, and Mumbai since touching down in the early hours of Saturday.

Before traveling to Kolkata's Salt Lake Stadium later that day, he digitally presented a 70ft (21m) statue of himself, assembled over 27 days by a large crew in the city in eastern India.

Troubled Kickoff in Football-Loving Kolkata

The tour, however, began with a troubled start after angry fans tore 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 a multitude of ardent supporters had spent up to 12,000 rupees to witness the event.

However, most of them were unable to catch a glimpse of him as he was accompanied by officials and celebrities on his quick walk around the stadium and then quickly whisked away as the situation became tense.

"Poor management of a much-publicized event, disorganization" and safety failures turned the stadium into a "battlefield", as fans – not allowed even a sight of Messi – "released their frustration by indulging in violence."

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

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

Smooth Events in Hyderabad and Mumbai

Messi's events in Hyderabad and Mumbai went off without a hitch, with fans expressing their joy at seeing the global icon online and in press interactions.

Messi also had meetings with several political figures and celebrities – Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan in Kolkata, political figure Rahul Gandhi in Hyderabad, and sporting icon Sachin Tendulkar in Mumbai.

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

There were speculation earlier that Messi would have a meeting with Narendra Modi in Delhi, but the Indian prime minister traveled abroad on Monday morning on a pre-arranged visit to Jordan, Ethiopia, and Oman.

The Reason of Messi's Immense Appeal in India

Messi's popularity stems not just from his lengthy international career and broad TV coverage of European football – he's the record scorer for Barcelona – but also the strong affinity that countless Indians have with what is often known as the beautiful game.