'He Is Our Idol': How Lionel Messi's Argentina Farewell United Fans 15,000km Away in India

When Lionel Messi pulled on Argentina's sky-blue and white jersey for the final time in a farewell friendly against Benin, the emotional ripples travelled far beyond the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires. Nearly 15,000 kilometres away, in living rooms, cafés and neighbourhoods across India, the occasion carried the weight of a national event for a player who was born in Rosario but is treated as one of their own.

For Yadil Iqbal, a content creator from Kodungallur in the southern state of Kerala, witnessing that last dance in person required a leap of faith. He set off on a 40-hour journey spanning multiple airports and long layovers, spending thousands of dollars, all without holding a ticket to the match itself. He packed an Argentina jersey and a special watch intended as a gift for Messi, documenting the trip for his 1.7 million Instagram followers as he went.

Rather than feeling anxious about the gamble, Iqbal drew confidence from a moment four years earlier, when he watched Argentina win the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. That triumph, he told Al Jazeera, convinced him that nothing now counted as an impossible challenge. His belief was rewarded hours after landing in Argentina, when he secured a ticket on the resale market for around $1,000 — roughly three times its original value.

For Iqbal, the expense is trivial. He has named his toddler son "Lian Messil", a playful nod to the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner, and he has already built a monumental tribute near his home: a mural 32 feet tall and 20 feet wide depicting Messi's major trophies. The artwork, completed after Argentina's 2021 Copa America success, only reached Messi's attention in June this year, when Iqbal posted a birthday video using Spanish learned through Google Translate. Messi responded in the comments, thanking him by name — a moment Iqbal calls the best day of his life.

Iqbal's devotion reflects a broader phenomenon. In Kerala, and in the eastern city of Kolkata, support for Messi and Argentina runs unusually deep. During World Cups, entire neighbourhoods take on the colours of the Albiceleste, with sky blue and white flags draped from homes and, in some cases, the houses themselves repainted to match. Messi may hold the record as Argentina's most-capped player, but for these fans the connection is less about nationality than identity.

That intensity was on display in Mumbai this week as well. Sagar Shinde, a creative producer and sports content creator who grew up watching Messi, struggled to contain his emotions the day before the farewell match. He described the Argentine captain as the man who made him fall in love with football, adding that while he will keep watching the sport, the player who sparked that passion will no longer be there for the team he supports.

Shinde's attachment is permanently inked on his forearm: a tattoo commemorating the date Messi lifted the World Cup trophy in Qatar, the moment that finally quieted comparisons with the late Diego Maradona. He recalled challenging a friend to get matching tattoos if Messi won the tournament, then holding both of them to the promise once it happened. "God has given us what we wanted," he said, "so we have to live up to our promise."

His fandom reshaped his sporting loyalties. Like many Indian supporters, Shinde began following Barcelona in La Liga and the Argentina national team solely because of Messi, and he now cofounds FCB Mumbai, a fan club that organises screenings of both sides' matches. The group's commitment was evident on Wednesday, when hundreds gathered for a 4:30am kickoff screening despite the punishing eight-and-a-half-hour time difference between South Asia and South America.

Shinde's admiration rests on more than trophies. He points to Messi's elegance, dribbling ability and the way he reads the game as qualities that transcend club allegiance. "If you watch football, you have to admire Messi," he said, summing up a sentiment shared by supporters who have followed the forward from Barcelona to Inter Miami and through every Argentina campaign.

The farewell friendly against Benin marked the end of an international chapter spanning 21 years, a career that delivered a World Cup, multiple Copa America titles and a record haul of individual honours. For Indian fans, the goodbye is not merely the retirement of a great player but the closing of a personal era, one measured in sleepless nights, painted walls, tattoos and long-haul flights.

The distance between Buenos Aires and Kochi, or between the Monumental and a Mumbai screening hall, has never diluted that bond. If anything, the time zones and travel costs have become part of the ritual, proof of devotion rather than obstacles to it. As Iqbal's journey shows, some supporters are willing to cross the planet on faith alone — and to come home with a story worth telling.

For now, the murals remain, the jerseys still hang and the fan clubs continue to gather before dawn. What changes is the knowledge that the man in the No 10 shirt will not be walking out for Argentina again. For his followers in India, that absence will be felt as keenly as if he had played his entire career in their own backyard.