Kerala Sports Minister V Abdurahiman said that the Argentina football team had deceived the state by failing to show up for a game despite being paid for it.
Abdurahiman stated that he had a strong desire for Lionel Messi and the Argentina football team to visit Kerala and play a game in the state.

"For that, I had held several discussions. It was also not an easy task to find sponsors to arrange the Rs 250 crore to be paid to the international football team. But, after receiving the money, the Argentine football team cheated us. We did not expect such a betrayal from them. Not coming after promising to do so," the minister told a TV channel.

He claimed that after asking, he discovered that Argentina had done this to five other nations.

"They took money from those countries, but never went there to play. It is a situation where a case will have to be filed against the Argentine football team, and they will have to pay us compensation," Abdurahiman said.

He said that he was really looking forward to their arrival and that, therefore, their deception was disappointing and made him sad.

"It has disappointed the football lovers in Kerala. I don't know to whom I will tell my disappointment," he added.

In November of last year, the minister announced that Lionel Messi and the Argentina football team would visit Kerala in March of this year.

Lionel Messi visited India for the 'GOAT India Tour 2025'

Lionel Messi toured India in December 2025 as part of the "GOAT India Tour 2025", visiting Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and New Delhi from December 13–15. The tour featured fan events, youth clinics, and a celebrity match, though it faced controversy in Kolkata regarding crowd management and a short appearance.
Messi was joined by Luis Suarez and Rodrigo De Paul during his visit, which was a huge success. The Argentine star did not visit Kerala during this tour.

A separate proposal for Messi and Argentina to visit Kerala in March 2026 for a match was cancelled following payment disputes.