No-show from Lionel Messi and Argentina for exhibition matches in Singapore and India
SINGAPORE – Lionel Messi and his Argentina team have gone AWOL, as far as friendlies that were to have taken place in India and Singapore are concerned.
In March 2025, global bank HSBC and the Argentinian Football Association (AFA) announced in a joint statement that the World Cup and Copa America champions will play exhibition matches in India in October 2025 and in Singapore in the first quarter of 2026.
AFA president Claudio Tapia said then: "The AFA's international expansion continues to pave the way for leading companies such as HSBC to join the Argentinian national team family."
HSBC added then that its customers and partners will have access to "exclusive perks" including tickets, curated fan experiences and meet-and-greet opportunities.
It said in the statement: "This collaboration bridges the worlds of banking and sport, marking the first time a banking institution has collaborated with the Argentinian national football team in Singapore and India."
However, both games failed to materialise and the timeline had elapsed.
Argentina played friendlies against Venezuela and Puerto Rico in the US in October 2025 instead.
It was also reported that month that their visit to Kerala for an exhibition match on Nov 17, 2025 had been postponed to March 2026. But that also did not happen, with Argentina hosting Mauritania and Zambia in friendlies in Buenos Aires on March 27 and 31 respectively instead.
There were no further details on their match in Singapore and there are no signs to indicate that it would take place at all.
HSBC declined comment and directed The Straits Times to AFA, which did not respond to queries sent over the past two weeks.
On HSBC's Facebook promotional post about the "landmark partnership" with AFA and the "exclusive exhibition match", a user named Phil Sim asked if Argentina were still coming, with fellow user Patrick David Selvamani replying, "no sound".
Argentina and Messi fans whom ST spoke to expressed their disappointment.
Jeffrey Ang, a 30-year-old sales executive, said: "For those of us who are unable to travel to the Americas for the World Cup or to the US to watch Messi play for Inter Miami, this would have been a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to watch him play live.
"Hopefully, they will honour their word and still come on a later date."
But a rescheduling appears unlikely in the upcoming FIFA international windows in which clubs have to release players for national team duty.
Argentina are already booked to play Honduras and Iceland on June 6 and June 9 respectively in the US before they defend their title at the June 11-July 19 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico.
There are also the Sept 21-Oct 6 and Nov 9-17 windows later in the year, but ST understands that there is currently no booking for an international football match at the National Stadium – the only playing venue in Singapore befitting of Argentina and Messi's status – during those periods.
This is not the first time Messi has let down fans who had hoped to watch him in person.
La Albiceleste were last in Singapore in 2017, when they defeated the hosts 6-0 in a friendly at the National Stadium on June 13 without Messi.
Four days earlier, Messi featured in their 1-0 win over Brazil in Australia, but only passed through Singapore in transit en route to Argentina to prepare for his wedding. This was a dampener for fans of the superstar and those who had forked out between $40 and $188 for tickets.
While the world champions did not play a friendly in India in 2025, Messi did visit Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai and New Delhi for a Dec 13-15 promotional tour alongside compatriot Rodrigo de Paul and Uruguay's Luis Suarez.
But the visit descended into chaos in Kolkata on Dec 13 as fans invaded the pitch, vandalised banners and tents, ripped out and hurled the plastic seats at the Salt Lake Stadium as supporters felt ripped off.
Messi was surrounded by politicians, celebrities and security, blocking the view of the fans – some of whom had paid 12,000 rupees (S$163) – and he left after only 20 minutes when the plan was for him to stay for an hour. His subsequent visits to the other Indian cities happened in a more orderly fashion.
Separately, VID Music Group has filed claims of fraud and breach of contract against Messi and the AFA.
Reuters reported that the lawsuit accuses Messi of conspiring with sports executive Julian Marcos Kapelan and the AFA "to engage in conduct" designed to induce VID into entering contracts with AFA "under false pretences". Messi is accused of negligent misrepresentation as well.
The claims against the AFA also include breaches of contract relating to the October 2025 friendlies against Venezuela and Puerto Rico, and two proposed matches scheduled for the US in June 2026, while Kapelan is accused of fraud.
Messi watched Argentina's 1-0 win over Venezuela on Oct 10 from a suite at Hard Rock Stadium in Florida, according to the lawsuit. The following day, he started and scored twice for Inter Miami in a 4-0 Major League Soccer win over Atlanta United.
He later appeared for Argentina in a 6-0 win over Puerto Rico on Oct 14, recording two assists in a match that was also organised and promoted by VID, but was moved from Chicago and played at Inter Miami's then home ground, Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale.
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