Who is Satadru Dutta? Lionel Messi's GOAT tour organiser arrested after Salt Lake Stadium chaos

The Kolkata police on Saturday detained Satadru Dutta, the organiser of Lionel Messi's GOAT tour in India, after chaos and vandalism broke out at the Salt Lake Stadium.

A suo motu case has been registered by the police over allegations of mismanagement that triggered unrest in the stadium where Messi was scheduled to play.

"The agenda of the programme has to be investigated for clarity on what was promised," said Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) at West Bengal, Jawed Shamim, adding that CM Mamata Banerjee had instituted a high-power committee to further investigate the matter.

Satadru Dutta is the founder of 'A Satadru Dutta Initiative', a sports promotion firm that has brought football legends like Pele, Diego Maradona, Ronaldinho Gaucho, Emiliano Martinez, and Cafu to India in the past. In an interaction on Instagram, he had also declared his desire to one day bring legendary Portuguese footballer Cristiano Ronaldo to India.

Dutta's firm was also behind Messi's 'GOAT India Tour 2025', touted as a landmark private achievement that would bring one of the world's greatest footballers to India after 14 years. The two-day tour of four Indian ciities—including Kolkata, Hyderabad, and Mumbai—was scheduled to end in Delhi on Monday.

On Friday, he had even celebrated the unveiling of a 70-foot-tall statue of Messi in Kolkata, calling it a "landmark moment" for India and its football fans.

However, with Dutta's arrest after the chaos at Kolkata's Salt Lake Stadium, Messi's remaining appearances have been put into question. His remaining appearances are:

1) A 7v7 exhibition match at Hyderabad's Uppal Stadium later on Saturday.

2) A charity fashion show and celebrity match at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium on Sunday.

3) A meeting with PM Narendra Modi and a youth felicitation event in Delhi on Monday, concluding the tour.

Sources told THE WEEK that fans—who had paid about Rs 10,000 for a ticket to the event—were extremely unhappy after Messi was whisked away by security barely half an hour after his arrival. During his appearance, he was also surrounded by a number of people—most of whom were VIPs—blocking the view for the fans. Fans were also reportedly disappointed at the stadium lap being cancelled as well.

As a result, just after his exit, hordes of angry fans created a pandemonium, throwing bottles and chairs on the stadium—especially at the organisers.