Argentine World Cup-winner Lionel Messi thrilled fans in India with his GOAT Tour 2025 as he visited Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai and New Delhi as millions flocked in to catch a glimpse of the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner.
Following the conclusion of the four-city tour, Messi took to the social media platform Instagram to express his gratitude to the people of the peninsular nation for the affection they showered upon him.
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“Namaste India! What incredible visits to Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Kolkata. Thanks for the warm welcome, great hospitality and all the expressions of love throughout my tour. I hope football has a bright future in India,” Messi wrote.
“First of all, I’d like to thank India for all the
love they’ve shown over the past few days,” the 38-year-old said.
“It was a great experience for us to be able to share,” he added
“It was intense and short, but it was beautiful to receive all the love. I already knew it was coming but to receive it in the first place was amazing,” the Argentine superstar said.
“It’s crazy what they have done for us over the last few days,” the former Barcelona star added.
“We’ll take all the love and we’ll be back. Hopefully, one day we’ll be able to play a game, but, we will be back to visit India,” he concluded.
Messi was accompanied by teammates Rodrigo De Paul and Luis Suarez on the tour as he reached Kolkata to unveil a statue of his likeness before visiting Hyderabad, both on Saturday. He visited Mumbai on Sunday before concluding the trip to the sub-continent on Monday with his trip to New Delhi.
