It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the FIFA World Cup, which happens once every four years, is the second most celebrated festival in Kerala, after Onam. And preparations by fans of various teams and players in the southern Indian state have begun in full swing, with just over a week remaining for the kick-off in Qatar. And one of the images from Kerala that is being widely circulated on social media and even in International media is that of a 30-feet-tall cut out of legendary footballer and Argentine star Lionel Messi, situated in the middle of Kurungattu Kadavu river in Kerala’s Kozhikode district.
The image first appeared on social media on October 31, after Argentina fans from Kerala took to various social media platforms to share videos and images of the cut out as well as young men carrying the huge cut out to be set up in the middle of the river. With the image starting to go viral, several news and media outlets from Argentina also began to share the image.
En Pullavoor, un pequeño pueblo de la India, pusieron una gigantografía de Messi en medio del río. pic.twitter.com/nwOZWjACxb
— FOX Sports Argentina (@FOXSportsArg) October 31, 2022
“We are confident that this is the year that our Mishiha (Messiah) will finally get his hands on the World Cup,” said Ahmed, a member of one of the many Messi fan clubs in Kozhikode. The 30-feet-tall cut out was put up on the river by an Argentina Fans club of Pullavoor, in the north Kerala district.
Behind the Scene
— rizwan_m.m (@Rlzw4n) October 31, 2022
Messi #VamosArgentina pic.twitter.com/ySzaWQCn9y
It has always amused observers and sports commentators in India, how a small state in India, which is obsessed with cricket, can get extremely fanatical about football, even going to the extent of worshiping foreign players like Messi, Ronaldo or Neymar – like as if they all hail from Kerala. And when it comes to the FIFA World Cup, the support for the two Latin American teams – Brazil and Argentina is similar to the support the Indian cricket team gets during a major international tournament.