For long stretches, the atmosphere felt less Mumbai and more Camp Nou. Chants of 'Barca... Barca' and 'Suarez... Suarez' echoed through the stands as Messi interacted with youngsters, celebrities and former India football captain Sunil Chhetri.
They weren't up for a windfall even after the trophy but life was certain to get a lot better as some sponsors and state governments stepped up to lift them financially.
Lionel Messi on Thursday confirmed his participation in the much-anticipated GOAT Tour of India 2025, calling it an "honour" to revisit the "passionate football nation" where he last played 14 years ago.
Lionel Messi's GOAT Tour began amid chaos and vandalism at the Salt Lake Stadium, but for former India players Dipendu Biswas and Syed Rahim Nabi, it still turned into the moment of a lifetime in Kolkata on Saturday.
From Vori-Vori to Arroz Tapado and Punjab's kulchas... This is what the world loves to eat!
Satadru Dutta's rise was swift and ambitious. But that journey took a dramatic nosedive on Saturday.
Political parties in West Bengal, including the ruling TMC and opposition BJP, have condemned the organizers of an event featuring Lionel Messi in Kolkata after it descended into chaos due to spectators' inability to properly view the football star. Demands for action and accountability have been made.
Messi's last visit with the Argentina team to India was back in 2011, when they faced Venezuela in a friendly match at Kolkata's iconic Salt Lake Stadium.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday accepted Aroop Biswas's resignation as the sports minister in the wake of the controversy over the mismanagement of football icon Lionel Messi's event last week, a senior leader of the ruling Trinamool Congress said.
Indian football remained in a state of terminal decline after experiencing arguably its darkest phase in a year marked by severe administrative crisis, court hearings, financial issues, absence of domestic leagues, and a steep decline in performance of the senior men's team.
The Perth Stadium curator has promised the wicket will be green, fast and bouncy but Stokes offered no thoughts on whether England would attack with four quicks or pick the specialist spinner, Shoaib Bashir, in their 11.
A 12-year-old Dalit boy in Shimla district allegedly died by suicide after being harassed by upper caste women for entering their house. The incident has sparked outrage and calls for justice.
Aadujeevitham (The Goat Life) is undoubtedly one of the most successful experiments in Prithviraj's journey as an actor, applauds Divya Nair.
Aadujeevitham marks a new direction for Malayalam cinema, where ambition meets resources and the right people, all in favour of stories that deserve to be told on the biggest stage of them all, notes Arjun Menon.
New Zealand's Lisa Carrington completed a stunning clean sweep of gold medals in her Olympic events at by winning the women's kayak single 500 metres title.
India's live events scene is hitting a high note. With global performers adding the country to their tour maps and the government aiming to double the concert economy, hotels in key metro cities are bracing for sold-out weekends. Travel operators, too, are curating packages built entirely around concerts.
Voters in Bihar's Jehanabad and Ghosi express their hopes for change, particularly regarding job creation and development, in the upcoming government following the state elections.
Travellers are turning concerts into full-fledged weekend getaways, giving rise to the 'gigcation' -- a short, experience-led micro-holiday.
Whether it was in the company of superstars Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan -- or, on rare occasions with both together, among others -- Saravanan's demeanour would stand out, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Ariarne Titmus has retired from competitive swimming at the age of 25, ending a stellar career that featured one of the sport's great rivalries with American Katie Ledecky.
Argentine superstar Lionel Messi has sent his signed 2022 World Cup victorious jersey to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his 75th birthday.
Mari Selvaraj delivers his most rage-filled film in years, with a superbly cast Dhruv Vikram giving it his all, notices Arjun Menon.
Fans were surprised to see Kohli sporting a grey beard for the first time as he posed for a photo with Shash Patel in London.
The incident took place on Tuesday night in Arjun Dumri village under Hata police station limits.
Guess who the most under-rated batsman in the IPL is, according to Kohli?
Akshay Kumar, Arshad Warsi and Saurabh Shukla are in top form in Jolly LLB 3, applauds Deepa Gahlot.
The GenZ violence that engulfed Nepal is not only against nepo-babies -- its anger is broader and riddled with contradictions, making it difficult for interim PM Sushila Karki, points out Aditi Phadnis.
Terming the charge that Wangchuk incited the violence in Leh as 'misplaced', she claimed that he has been protesting in the "most Gandhian way possible" and the "situation escalated" on September 24 due to the actions of the CRPF.
Novak Djokovic's steady progress in the last few seasons is a testament to his mental strength and physical conditioning.
The series in Australia could well be Rohit's last in India Blues. But Kohli, given his high fitness standards, could play on until the 2027 World Cup.
The order draws sharp reactions from the Opposition NCP-SP and Shiv Sena- UBT leaders who called it an infringement of people's food choices.
The plot goes pretty much as expected but the Hai Junoon team seem to have sat with a check list of issues that affect today's teenagers, and ticked the ones used in the show, observes Deepa Gahlot.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured all possible help to Indian athletes in their endeavour to achieve greater heights and expressed confidence that the country will better its Hangzhou performance in the next edition of the Asian Games.
Researchers at the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology have produced India's first gene-edited sheep, marking a historic milestone in the field of animal biotechnology.
A recipe to celebrate the wonderful sourdough.
He is only the second Indian cricketer after Sachin Tendulkar to have breached the mark -- Tendulkar scored 34,357 runs across formats during his decorated career.
'Once I came out of The Traitors, I needed therapy to understand what had just happened on the show.'
The advisory features a ban on taking or sharing photos and videos of the sacrifice rituals on social media platforms.
Virat Kohli opted for a sharp side fade complemented by his signature well-groomed beard.
Glimpses from around the world that will make you smile and cry.
