Lionel Messi is set to return to India after 14 years to play an international football friendly match in Kerala.
The Argentine Football Association (AFA) confirmed their team’s visit to India on Friday while releasing their tentative schedule for friendly matches in the upcoming FIFA windows this year.
Argentina, the reigning world champions, will visit India in November to play an international football friendly match in Kerala.
This will mark Messi and the Argentina football team’s first visit to India since 2011, when they faced Venezuela in a friendly at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata.
The November fixtures will be part of three matches scheduled during the FIFA international window, with the other two games to be played in Luanda, Angola. Argentina’s opponents in these matched, however, are yet to be finalised.
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“The Argentine national team, led by Lionel Scaloni, will have two FIFA friendly windows in the remainder of 2025,” the AFA said in its statement.
“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, from the 10th to the 18th of November, will be played in Luanda, Angola, and Kerala, India (opponents to be determined),” it added.
The Argentina football team’s visit to India has been in the works for a while. It all started with the Kerala government announcing that they were actively trying to bring the team to play a friendly in India ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026.
Kerala Government had earlier received criticism for spending a lot of money to invite Messi and it was reported that he and the Argentine team had rejected the invitation.
Where will the match take place in Kerela?
The exact venue and the city for the friendly match in Kerala is yet to be revealed. However, one can expect the match to be held at Kochi’s Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, as it is the largest football ground in the southern Indian state.
Messi’s India Tour
After playing the friendly international match in Kerala, Messi is also expected to return for an individual tour across India in December, according to separate reports. The promotional event titled ‘GOAT Tour of India 2025’ is scheduled to cover Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Mumbai and New Delhi, culminating in a meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Also Read: Lionel Messi Or Cristiano Ronaldo, Who Has Scored More Goals In La Liga? Find Out
Lionel Messi in 2025
Lionel Messi has been enjoying an incredible season in the Major League Soccer, where he plays for Inter Miami. The 28-year-old recently became the leading goal scorer and assist provider in Inter Miami history. With that he etched a unique record of becoming the leading scorer and provider for three different teams for the first time in football history.
Messi, an Olympic champion from Beijing 2008, has led Argentina to the FIFA World Cup trophy in 2022 and won the Copa America for the second time last year. He is one of the most loved and followed footballers in the Indian sub-continent. His arrival in India is set to send his local fans into a frenzy!
