India, Dec. 13 -- Kolkata's Salt Lake Stadium was supposed to be the venue of celebration on Saturday (December 13). Instead, the loudest noise after Lionel Messi's appearance wasn't chanting - it was the sound of supporters feeling short-changed.

As the football icon's stadium lap was cut short and security tightened, fans in the stands and on social media poured out frustration: not at Messi, but at an experience they believed had been hijacked by access, optics and poor planning.

In video clips shared by news agencies, furious spectators accused organisers of turning the programme into a VIP showcase. One fan summed up the complaint in a line that quickly travelled online: "Only leaders and actors were surrounding Messi," adding that...