Never before has any international football star received the level of adulation throughout India as Lionel Messi did during his short trip to different cities in India. In 1977, Pele came to Kolkata with the Cosmos Club of New York to play against Mohun Bagan SG. Diego Maradona came to India twice – the first time to inaugurate a football school in West Bengal, and the second time to conduct football clinics with children.
They, too, were given a hearty welcome in India. However, there was a purpose for which they came. Pele and Maradona did their task and departed. This time, in the case of Messi, it seemed to have been all show and no substance.
No concrete work done
We were left wondering what the purpose of Messi’s visit was. There didn’t seem to be any concrete work that was done during the tour by the Argentine superstar. At every venue, he entered the stadium, waved to the crowds, kicked a ball for a few minutes, and then waved goodbye. Surprising as it may seem, thousands of people paid huge amounts to be waved at by Lionel Messi.
In Kolkata, the crowd could not even see Messi clearly, as he walked around accompanied by a throng of VIPs and other busybodies. The footballer was lost in the sea of heads. Naturally, the spectators who claimed to have paid upto Rs. 10,000 each, were angry at being denied the opportunity to get a look at Messi in real life.
Sense of perspective missing
The whole exercise has highlighted one aspect of crowd behaviour. Hype and publicity for an event can whip up a frenzy for any occasion, even if it has no significance. No one can deny that Messi is a world-level superstar. However, his value lies in his game. If he can be seen displaying his breathtaking skills on the field, it is worth watching and paying for. But, is it the same thing to see him waving at us? One must view the phenomenon called Messi in the right perspective.
Moreover, the fans sitting in the cramped stands were young folk, all football enthusiasts from middle-class backgrounds. For such people to spend thousands of rupees for a few minutes’ glimpse of Messi from a distance, it was totally unproductive. After the fiasco in Kolkata, when they hardly saw Messi, many of the enraged spectators called the show a scam.
More than 50,000 people paid between Rs. 4,000 to Rs. 10,000 (some reportedly paid up to Rs. 50,000 in black) for a brief look at Messi to walk around, wave a bit, and say a few words in Spanish. Tickets were sold out in all the venues – Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi.
In some cases, people booked slots for a photo and a handshake with the legend for Rs. 11.74 lakh each. It was an astonishing occurrence. Are Indians so ready to spend their hard-earned money for a few minutes of proximity to a famous person?
The Hyderabad function was better organised than the Kolkata one, and the twin cities crowd did get to see Messi for an hour in the stadium. Also, for the first time in the history of independent India, we saw a Chief Minister (Revanth Reddy) play football on the ground with a fair amount of competence. But, even then, the ticket prices were high, although not as exorbitant as in Kolkata.
Huge sums collected
The Week magazine estimates that Messi’s shows across India raked in between Rs. 120 to 180 crore in sponsorships. All this, for a three-day, three-city event that involved no sporting action at all.
And, was there anything meaningful achieved at the end? Messi gained nothing in terms of his football career. He did not play, did not increase his goal tally, and left India without having any football gains to show from his trip. Did Indian football gain anything? Again, a big NO.
Indian football in limbo
Indian football is stuck in the doldrums. The Indian Super League (ISL)tournament is in jeopardy without any sponsor. It’s estimated that a club in the ISL spends about Rs. 60 crore a season and posts losses every year. Even with the minimum-price ticket for an ISL match, pegged at about Rs.300, attendances at all matches are dwindling every year. No one is interested in running the league in its current form, and no one is doing anything about it. So, football is at a standstill in India.
If anything, the Messi tour enabled politicians and celebrities to have an opportunity to display themselves. The uber-rich got their selfies with Messi after paying hefty sums. The world’s media got something to focus on gleefully when the Kolkata crowd vandalised the venue. But soon,everyone will move on with their regular, day-to-day lives. And Indian football will be left with the same old questions for which nobody has any answers. The Messi visit was like a fireworks show, which ends after a lot of sound and spectacle, but leaves behind nothing that is tangible.
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