Lionel Messi Addresses Chaotic Crowd Altercation at Argentina-Brazil Match

Fans got violent in the stands before the match in Rio de Janeiro even began.

Argentina defeated Brazil, 1–0, in a World Cup qualifier match in Rio De Janeiro on Tuesday night, but the game was marred by a violent altercation between fans before it even started. Consequently, Lionel Messi and the Argentinian team approached the stands where the incident was happening and then walked off the field before the game was scheduled to begin while the Brazilian team remained in place.

After the match, Messi addressed the situation and why the team approached the stands during the altercation in a post-match interview.

“It was bad because we saw how they were beating people … The police, as it already happened in the Libertadores final, were once again repressing the people with night sticks. There were players who had families over there,” Messi said after the game, via Reuters. “We went to the locker room because it was the best way to calm everything down. It could have ended in tragedy.”

🚨 Lionel Messi and the Argentina team walking towards the Argentina fans that are getting hit by security.https://t.co/l6V7BAneyM

— Roy Nemer (@RoyNemer) November 22, 2023

The game was delayed approximately 30 minutes, but Argentina eventually beat Brazil at Maracanã Stadium for the second time since 2021, handing Brazil its first ever World Cup qualifying loss at home. Argentina is now in first place in the South American World Cup qualifier standings, while Brazil drops to sixth place through six games.

However, Messi explained that the team wouldn’t celebrate the win because of the chaos before the match.

“Tonight we made history, but it’s important to say that it’ll be marked by the repression of Brazilians against Argentinians once again,” Messi wrote, in Spanish, on Instagram. “It can’t be accepted. It’s madness. It has to stop immediately.”