THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Football virtuoso Lionel Messi will not visit Kerala this year, confirmed sports minister V. Abdurahiman. Genuine efforts were ongoing to wheedle the Argentine team and Messi to visit Kerala for a match. However, the Argentine Football Association informed the minister of Messi’s busy schedules and unavailability to visit the southern state during October of this year. The sponsors have already booked the dates for October, and it is unlikely that they will change. This has now led to a confirmation that Messi will not visit Kerala this year.

At the same time, Lionel Messi will visit Kolkata, Mumbai, Ahmedabad and New Delhi and will hold a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi this year. As per sources, the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai has been booked for the event, anticipating Messi’s arrival.

Messi will arrive in Kolkata at 10 pm on December 12. The star will be in Kolkata for two days. The next day, a meet-and-greet event will be held at 9:00 a.m. Then, the football icon's 70-foot statue will be unveiled on VIP Road. After that, the star will also participate in events attended by Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and other dignitaries.

On December 13, Messi will attend a private event at Shantigram, the headquarters of the Adani Foundation in Ahmedabad. The event at Wankhede will be on the evening of the 14th. He will meet the Prime Minister in Delhi on December 15. Messi will also attend the event at Feroz Shah Kotla.