Satadru Dutta, the arrested main organizer of the Lionel Messi event, revealed during the investigation that the football icon was paid ₹89 crore for visiting India. He claimed that the total expenditure on the trip was ₹100 million crowns.
“Lionel Messi got paid ₹89 crores on the tour while ₹11 crore was paid as tax to the Government of India,” Dutta revealed during lengthy interrogation by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) officer, according to news agency PTI.
Dutta told investigators, according to PTI sources, “Of this amount, 30 percent was raised from sponsors, while another 30 percent was generated through ticket sales.”
Read also | WATCH: Lionel Messi chants ‘Jai Mata Di’ in Vantara with Anant and Radhika
Meanwhile, the amount of over ₹20 crore in Dutta’s frozen bank accounts were found by the SIT officers, the officer said.
“Dutta claimed that the amount in his bank account was money he got from ticket sales for Messi’s event in Kolkata and Hyderabad and also from sponsors. We are verifying his claim,” the officer said.
Financial details related to Lionel Messi’s visit to India were made public after SIT sleuths seized several documents following a raid at Dutt’s house on Friday.
Chaos at the Kolkata Salt Lake Stadium
Thousands of spectators bought high-priced tickets to attend Messi’s opening leg of the GOAT India Tour at the Salt Lake Stadium on December 13.
However, the program spiraled into chaos as a large number of people crowded around Messi on the pitch, leaving him barely visible from the stands.
Read also | Messi will end his tour of India with a visit to Vantara, Hindu rituals and a warm thank you
This sparked anger among fans, some of whom later vandalized parts of the stadium. Angry fans resorted to vandalism at the Kolkata stadium, blaming mismanagement of the event and criticizing VIPs and politicians for taking away the football icon’s attention and time to the extent that fans didn’t even catch a glimpse of Messi.
The situation escalated when angry fans attempted to enter the ground to demolish the marquee and goal post. To control the situation, the police used mild force to disperse the angry mob from the ground.
Less than hours after the chaos, Dutta – the sole organizer of the program – was arrested at the airport as he was leaving for Hyderabad. On December 14, he was sent to a police cell for 14 days.
Read also | WATCH: Sachin Tendulkar takes on Lionel Messi at the Wankhede
The West Bengal government has set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) comprising senior IPS officers Piyush Pandey, Javed Shamim, Supratim Sarkar and Muralidhar to investigate the vandalism at the event of Argentine football star Lionel Messi at the Salt Lake Stadium.
The SIT is also probing security lapses, access tampering and the role of organizers and officials in the incident, the officer added.
Who is Satadru Dutta?
Satadru Dutta is a Kolkata-based sports promoter who has brought several global football icons to India over the years.
A commerce graduate, Dutta began his professional career in finance, working at Investmart – later known as IL&FS Securities – near Elgin Road in the early 2000s.
Read also | Lionel Messi and Antonella Roccuzzo joint net worth explained in 2025
In 2011, he founded A Satadru Dutta Initiative, a platform that combines sports promotion, celebrity management and social causes.
Over the years, he has been associated with bringing international football stars such as Ronaldinho, Cafu, Diego Maradona, Lionel Messi or Argentine goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez to India.
(With input from agencies)
