Confusion continues to swirl over whether Lionel Messi and the Argentina national football team will visit Kerala later this year.
Congress on Saturday demanded that the CPI(M)-led state government in Kerala clarify its position in the wake of reported allegations from the Argentine Football Association (AFA) that Lionel Messi’s trip was cancelled due to a violation of contract norms.
KPCC president Sunny Joseph and Lok Sabha MP Shafi Parambil jabbed at the Left dispensation, quipping that “Lionel Messi is missing” and accusing the Pinarayi Vijayan government of misleading football fans.
“The state government should reply because they are being accused in the matter. Lakhs of rupees have already been spent. Now, the AFA itself has made things clear. The people deserve to know the facts,” Joseph said on Saturday.
Parambil alleged that the government had “misused” enthusiasm for Messi and Argentina to score political points ahead of elections. “They cheated the people. Now, the AFA itself has said the state violated the contract,” he claimed.
The criticism follows media reports quoting an Argentina team official as saying the Kerala government breached the agreement.
Earlier this week, state sports minister V. Abdurahiman confirmed the Messi-led side would not visit in October, the only month the event sponsor was willing to host them, citing “travel difficulties” conveyed by the team.
The minister’s statement marked a climbdown from his repeated assertions that Argentina would arrive either in October or November, with the government bearing expenses for their stay, security, and logistics as “state guests.”
The episode has also revived questions over the government’s spending, with revelations that Rs 13 lakh of public funds were used for Abdurahiman’s September 2024 trip to Spain to invite Messi, despite his earlier assurance that “not even a single rupee” from the state exchequer would be spent.
Argentina enjoys cult-like support in parts of Kerala, particularly in Malappuram and Kozhikode, where enthusiasm surged after Messi’s 2022 FIFA World Cup triumph.
Abdurahiman, who is from Malappuram, had spearheaded the invitation amid speculation of political motives, with local body polls in December and the Assembly election due next year.
The government has yet to respond to the Congress’ demands or the AFA’s claims, leaving uncertainty over whether the world champions’ much-hyped Kerala stopover will ever materialise.