On 15 June (Thursday), Argentina and Australia held a friendly match at the Worker’s Stadium in Beijing, China. While Argentina won the game 2-0, this Messi fan won an even bigger achievement for himself.
Midway through the game, a Chinese fan donning Messi’s iconic jersey ran down to the pitch to hug the legend himself.
Source: Ng Han Guan/AP via CNN
While the fan was eventually caught by security, he still had a huge smile plastered on his face.
Subsequently, the fan was also given a one-year ban from entering stadiums for sports events, though we suspect he isn’t too depressed.
The friendly match between Argentina and Australia took place on 15 June (Thursday) at the Worker’s Stadium in Beijing, China.
As always, the star of the show was Lionel Messi from Argentina. Besides Argentina winning with a 2-0 scoreline, Messi himself also managed to score his fastest-ever goal 79 seconds into the game.
However, besides Messi, there was someone else who managed to capture the attention of everyone in the stadium.
According to Chinese outlet Global Times, an 18-year-old surnamed Di took a leap of faith, and jumped down from his seat in the stands. Sprinting with all his might, he ran straight towards his idol.
Source: @beinsportsusa on TikTok
While a few security guards attempted to catch him, they were not as fast as Di. Eventually, the young fan managed to run to Messi and give him a short hug.
Afterwards, he waved his hands in the air, with the entire stadium cheering and supporting him.
Besides interacting with just one star, Di managed to kill two birds with one stone.
As he continued to run away from the security guards, he even managed to give Argentina’s star goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez a high-five.
Source: @runews on Twitter
Eventually, the security guards managed to catch him. They then dragged him out of the field, holding him by his arms and legs.
Source: Thomas Peters on Reuters via CNN
Despite getting caught, Di had the brightest smile plastered on his face. After all, he had just met a football legend.
According to Global Times, the police subsequently detained the boy and banned him from entering stadiums hosting such sports events for 12 months.
CNN reported that Di has accepted his punishment, and has also offered an apology to the police.
He also apologised to his hero, saying, “Messi, I’m sorry… I’m really sorry to meet you this way. I really wanted your autograph, but they were chasing me, so I didn’t ask for it.”
While it must have been thrilling for him to meet his idol in such a way, such behaviour is definitely not encouraged.
Hopefully, he’ll be able to meet Messi again legally.
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Featured image adapted from @runews on Twitter and @beinsportsusa on TikTok.
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